UBHARV  OF  PRINCETON 


JU! 


THEOLOGICAL  SEMINARY 


BS  2665  .P47  1915 
Pettingill,  William  L.  1866- 

1950. 
Simple  studies  in  Romans 


rs^u-ei-m.^  I  ^  <^  V» 


SIMPLE    STUDIES 

IN 

ROMANS 


LIBHARY  OF  PRINCETON 


MAY  2  4  2000 

BY 


W1L1LL\M  L.   PETTIMQILL 
THEOLOfilffi^^EMINARY 


Israel,  Jehovah's  Covenant  People  ;    Simple  Studies  in 

Daniel;    Simple  Studies  in  Matthew;    Simple 

Studies  in  Revelation 


THIRD    EDITION 


172t-23  SPRINQ  GARDEN  STRECST 
PHILADELPHIA,    PA„ 


Copyright,  1915 

By  FRED.  KELKER 

Harrisburg,  Pa. 


FOREWORD 


It  is  fitting  that  Romans  should  be  located  at 
the  beginning  of  the  New  Testament  epistles,  be- 
cause of  its  fundamental  character,  setting  forth 
as  it  does  in  logical  order  of  sequence  the  things 
that  are  elementary  in  "the  faith  which  was  once 
delivered  to  the  saints." 

In  these  studies  the  purpose  is  to  help  the  chil- 
dren of  God  to  a  clear  understanding  of  the  won- 
derful truths  set  forth  in  Romans,  to  the  end  that 
they  may  be  established.  In  the  final  chapter  of 
the  book  it  is  declared  that  God  is  able  to  estab- 
lish His  people,  and  it  is  pointed  out  that  His 
means  of  thus  establishing  them  is  according  to 
what  Paul  calls  his  own  gospel,  ''and  the  preach- 
ing of  Jesus  Christ  according  to  the  revelation  of 
the  mystery."  Paul's  gospel,  including  "the  reve- 
lation of  the  mystery,"  finds  its  beginnings  in 
Romans.  The  body  of  truth  revealed  to  Paul 
had  been  "kept  secret  since  the  ages  began,  but 
now  is  made  manifest,"  starting  with  Romans 
(Rom.  16:25,  26;  Eph.  3:5-7).  The  Thessa- 
lonian  epistles,  and  some  others,  were  written  be- 
fore this  book,  but  it  is  hard  to  resist  the  con- 
clusion that  the  Holy  Spirit  has  superintended  the 
arrangement  of  the  books  of  the  New  Testament, 
and  that  among  the  epistles,  Romans  is  rightly 
first. 

3 


4  SIMPLE.  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

The  late  Dr.  Stifler,  whose  admirable  outline 
we  have  followed  to  a  considerable  extent,  used 
to  tell  his  students  that  the  chief  difficulty  con- 
nected with  the  study  of  Romans  was  that  the 
Lord's  people  would  not  believe  it.  "It  is  not," 
said  he,  "that  the  book  is  hard  to  understand,  but 
that  so  many  who  read  it  refuse  to  believe  what  it 
says."  Doubtless  this  is  the  main  difficulty  with 
all  Bible  study:  how  can  we  understand  what 
God  has  said  unless  we  begin  by  believing  it? 
May  God  Himself  bring  us  to  this  study  in  the 
right  attitude  of  mind  and  heart,  and  deliver  us 
from  the  sin  of  unbelief,  "which  doth  so  easily 
beset  us !" 

For  we  may  not  forget  that  this  book  speaks  to 
us  with  authority.  Penned  by  the  accredited  rep- 
resentative of  the  risen  Christ,  it  is  as  if  He  Him- 
self had  written  it.  The  words  we  read  here  are 
God's  words,  written  by  God's  man  as  he  is 
moved  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  With  all  the  Scrip- 
tures, they  are  God-breathed  (2  Tim.  3:  16). 

Dr.  C.  I.  Scofield  says  (''Correspondence 
Course")  : 

"Not  one  word  of  the  New  Testament  had  been  writ- 
ten when  Christ  departed  from  the  earth;  but  we  have 
His  express  authority  for  receiving  it  as  the  inspired 
Word  of  God.  (a)  He  said  plainly  that  He  would  leave 
the  revelation  of  truth  unfinished  (Jno.  16:12);  (b) 
He  promised  that  this  revelation  should  be  completed 
after  His  departure  (Jno.  16:  13)  ;  (c)  He  chose  certain 
persons  to  receive  such  additional  revelations,  and  to  be 
His  witnesses,  preachers  and  teachers  after  His  de- 
parture (Jno.  16:13;    15:27;    Ac.  1:8;    Mt.  28:19,  20; 


FOREWORD.  5 

Ac.  9 :  15-17)  ;  (d)  Knowing  beforehand  what  they  would 
write,  He  gave  their  words  precisely  the  same  authority 
as  His  own  (Mt.  10:14,  15;  Lk.  10:16;  Jno.  13:20; 
17:20)." 

All  this,  of  course,  applies  equally  to  the  writ- 
ings of  Paul,  who  received  his  commission  from 
the  hands  of  the  risen  and  glorified  Christ.  Paul 
comes  to  us  with  the  very  words  of  Him  Who  is 
Head  over  all  things  to  the  Church.  To  again 
quote  Dr.  Scofield : 

"We  conclude,  upon  the  testimony  of  Christ,  and  of 
the  writers  themselves,  that  the  Scriptures  are  verbally 
inspired — that  the  Holy  Spirit  gave  the  words.  The 
notion  that  'the  inspiration  is  in  the  concept,'  and  not 
in  the  words,  is  contrary  to  the  express  declaration  of 
the  witnesses  who  knew." 

Our  epistle  falls  naturally  into  four  great 
parts,  which  may  be  indicated  and  easily  remem- 
bered by  the  use  of  four  key-words,  namely : 

I.  Sin.  Here  we  are  told  the  naked  truth 
about  sin;  here  we  see  the  awful  guilt  of  man, 
and  his  utter  helplessness.  This  division  reaches 
to  chapter  3 :  20,  where  every  mouth  is  stopped 
and  the  whole  world  brought  in  guilty  before 
God. 

n.  Righteousness.  Having  shown  the  des- 
perate need  resulting  from  the  ravages  of  the 
dread  disease  of  sin,  the  Spirit  of  God  comes  to 
pour  oil  and  wine  into  the  wounds,  and  to  show 
how  our  need  is  fully  met  in  the  gospel.  This  di- 
vision extends  to  the  end  of  the  8th  chapter. 


6  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

III.  Vindication.  Chapters  9,  10  and  11  are 
a  vindication  of  the  ways  of  God  in  His  deaHngs 
with  Israel. 

IV.  Walk.  Growing  out  of  the  doctrines  of 
the  epistle,  and  based  upon  them,  are  the  exhor- 
tations of  the  final  chapters,  12  to  16,  calling 
upon  Christians  to  walk  in  the  way  of  holiness. 
This  is  ever  the  Holy  Spirit's  method :  first  He 
tells  us  the  truth  about  our  position,  and  then  He 
seeks  to  bring  us  practically  into  conduct  be- 
fitting that  position.  For  example,  in  Eph.  5 :  8 
it  is  written: 

"Ye  were  sometimes  darkness,  but  now  are  ye  light 
in  the  Lord:    walk  as  children  of  light." 

Indeed,  this  should  be  the  object  of  all  Bible 
s.tudy.  Truth  itself  is  valueless  except  it  be  trans- 
muted into  life.  "Knowledge,"  by  itself,  "puflf- 
eth  up."  "If  ye  know  these  things,  happy  are  ye 
if  ye  do  them." 


PROLOGUE 


(Chapter  1:1-17) 


The  prefatory  paragraphs  in  the  first  seventeen 
verses  of  chapter  i,  are  two : 

I.    The  SA1.UTAT10N  (1-7). 

1.  "Paul,  Jesus  Christ's  slave"  (i).  This  is 
the  true  meaning  of  the  opening  phrase.  The 
word  translated  "servant"  in  the  common  ver- 
sions is  literally  "bondman,"  that  is  "slave.'* 
Thus  this  man  at  once  identifies  himself:  he  is 
the  Lord's  slave;  he  has  taken  His  yoke  upon 
him,  and  is  His  willing  bondservant.  He  has 
known  the  bondage  of  sin,  but  this  is  a  bondage 
of  love.  The  yoke  he  now  wears  is  easy,  and  the 
burden  is  light  (Mat.  11 :  28,  29). 

2.  "A  called  apostle"  (i).  Not  merely 
"called  an  apostle,"  and  much  less  "called  to  be 
an  apostle."  Many  of  the  commentators,  and 
even  the  translators,  break  down  here.  Most  of 
them  have  "called  to  be,"  and  the  Twentieth  Cen- 
tury New  Testament  goes  so  far  as  to  render  it 
"called  to  become  an  apostle."  Alford  points 
out  that  in  Paul's  case,  his  call  to  the  apostleship 
was  a  very  special  one.  He  was  "called,  and  that 
to  the  very  highest  office,  of  an  apostle ;  and  even 

7 


8  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

more — among  the  apostles,  not  one  by  original  se- 
lection, but  one  specially  called."  And  on  this 
point  Bengel  says : 

"The  rest  of  the  apostles  were  educated  by  long  inter- 
course with  Jesus,  and  were  called  first  to  follow  Him, 
and  obey  Him,  then  put  forth  as  apostles.  Paul,  before- 
time  a  persecutor,  was  suddenly  made  an  apostle  by 
special  calling.  In  like  manner,  the  Jews  were  God's 
people  by  promise ;  the  Greeks,  by  simple  calling.  Thus 
the  called  apostle  had  a  similitude  and  relation  to  the 
called  saints"  (verse  7). 

Paul,  then,  was  an  apostle  by  call,  even  the  call 
of  the  risen  Christ.  It  becomes  us,  therefore,  to 
heed  well  the  message  he  brings  us.  He  speaks, 
not  as  a  mere  messenger,  but  as  an  apostle — a 
"legate,"  as  Murdock  puts  it.  The  word  apostle 
means  "a  sent  one,"  but  in  its  New  Testament 
sense  it  stands  for  one  who  is  sent  clothed  with 
full  authority  to  speak  and  act  for  the  divine 
Sender. 

3.  "Separated  unto  the  gospel  of  God"  (i). 
Paul  had  no  difficulty  in  classifying  himself ;  he 
knew  where  he  belonged,  and  to  Whom.  He  was 
the  Lord's  slave,  and  his  particular  business  was 
in  connection  with  "the  gospel  of  God" — God's 
good  news.  He  was  "a  chosen  vessel,"  dedicated 
to  a  certain  particular  use  (Ac.  9 :  15).  His  work 
was  marked  out  for  him  even  from  his  birth 
(Gal.  1 :  15),  though  it  took  a  long  time  for  him 
to  discover  that  fact. 


PROLOGUE.  9 

"The  theme  of  Romans,"  says  Dr.  Scofield 
{"Reference  Bible"), 

"is  the  'gospel  of  God'  (i:i),  the  very  widest  pos- 
sible designation  of  the  whole  body  of  redemption 
truth,  for  it  is  He  with  Whom  is  'no  respect  of 
persons ;'  and  Who  is  not  'the  God  of  the  Jews  only,' 
but  'of  the  Gentiles  also'  (2:11;  3:29).  Accordingly, 
'all  the  world'  is  found  guilty  (3:  19),  and  a  redemption 
is  revealed  as  wide  as  the  need,  upon  the  alone  condition 
of  faith.  Not  only  does  Romans  embody  in  the  fullest 
way  the  doctrines  of  grace  in  relation  to  salvation,  but 
in  three  remarkable  chapters  (9-11)  the  great  promises 
to  Israel  are  reconciled  with  the  promises  concerning 
the  Gentiles,  and  the  fulfilment  of  the  former  shown  to 
await  the  completion  of  the  church  and  coming  of  the 
Deliverer  out  of  Zion  (11:25-27).  The  key-phrase  is 
'the  righteousness  of  God'  (i :  17;  3:  21,  22)." 

4.  "Which  He  had  promised  afore  by  His 
prophets  in  the  Holy  Scriptures"  (2).  In  the 
Greek  there  is  no  article  preceding  "Holy  Scrip- 
tures," though  the  Old  Testament  is  clearly  indi- 
cated by  the  mention  of  God's  prophets,  and  the 
insertion  of  the  article  is  therefore  perhaps  war- 
ranted. The  point  in  the  statement  is  that  the 
gospel  u^as  revealed  in  fulfilment  of  promises 
which  God  had  made  (compare  i  Pet.  i :  11). 

5.  "Concerning  His  Son"  (3).  The  person  of 
Christ  is  the  very  substance  of  the  gospel  of  God. 
According  to  the  flesh  He  is,  as  the  prophets  pre- 
dicted, a  descendant  of  David.  According  to  the 
Spirit  of  Holiness,  He  was  shown  to  be  the  Son 
of  God  with  power  by  resurrection :  not  His 
own  resurrection  merely,  but  that  of  others  also, 


10  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

"such  as  were  dead"  (1911  Bible,  margin).    Mr. 
Darby  says  ("Synopsis") : 

"The  subject  of  this  gospel  is,  first  of  all,  the  Son  of 
God.  He  has  accomplished  a  work;  but  it  is  Himself 
Who  is  the  true  subject  of  the  gospel.  Now  He  is 
presented  in  a  two-fold  aspect:  ist,  the  object  of  the 
promises,  Son  of  David  according  to  the  flesh;  2d,  the 
Son  of  God  in  power.  Who,  in  the  midst  of  sin,  walked 
by  the  Spirit  in  divine  and  absolute  hoHness  (resur- 
rection being  the  illustrious  and  victorious  proof  of 
Who  He  was,  walking  in  this  character).  That  is  to 
say,  resurrection  is  a  public  manifestation  of  that  power 
by  which  He  walked  in  absolute  holiness  during  His 
life — a  manifestation  that  He  is  the  Son  of  God  in 
power.  He  is  clearly  shown  forth  as  Son  of  God  in 
power  by  this  means.  Here  it  was  no  question  of  prom- 
ise, but  of  power,  of  Him  Who  could  enter  into  con- 
flict with  the  death  in  which  man  lay,  and  overcome  it 
completely;  and  that,  in  connection  with  the  holiness 
which  bore  testimony  during  his  life  to  the  power  of  that 
Spirit  by  which  He  walked,  and  in  which  He  guarded 
Himself  from  being  touched  by  sin.  It  was  in  the  same 
power  by  which  He  was  holy  in  life  absolutely  that  He 
was  raised  from  the  dead. 

"In  the  ways  of  God  on  the  earth  He  was  the  object 
and  the  fulfilment  of  the  promises.  With  regard  to  the 
condition  of  man  under  sin  and  death,  He  was  com- 
pletely Conqueror  of  all  that  stood  in  His  way,  whether 
Hving  or  in  resurrection.  It  was  the  Son  of  God  Who 
was  there,  made  known  by  resurrection  according  to 
the  power  that  was  in  Him,  a  power  that  displayed  itself 
according  to  the  Spirit  by  the  holiness  in  which  He 
lived. 

"What  marvelous  grace  to  see  the  whole  power  of 
evil — that  dreadful  door  of  death  which  closed  upon 
the  sinful  life  of  man,  leaving  him  to  the  inevitable  judg- 
ment  that    he    deserved — ^broken,    destroyed,    by    Him, 


PROLOGUE.  II 

Who  was  willing  to  enter  into  the  gloomy  chamber 
which  shut  in,  and  take  upon  Himself  all  the  weakness  of 
man  in  death,  and  thus  completely  and  absolutely  de- 
livered him  whose  penalty  He  had  borne  in  submitting 
to  death !  This  victory  over  death,  this  deliverance  of 
man  from  its  dominion,  by  the  power  of  the  Son  of  God 
become  man,  when  He  had  undergone  it,  and  that  as  a 
sacrifice  for  sin,  is  the  only  ground  of  hope  for  mortal 
and  sinful  man.  It  sets  aside  all  that  sin  and  death  have 
to  say.  It  destroys,  for  him  who  has  a  portion  in 
Christ,  the  seal  of  judgment  upon  sin,  which  is  in  death; 
and  a  new  man,  a  new  life,  begins  for  him  who  has 
been  held  under  it  outside  the  whole  scene.  The  whole 
effect  of  his  former  misery — a  life  founded  on  the  value 
of  that  which  the  Son  of  God  had  there  accomplished. 

"In  fine,  we  have,  as  the  subject  of  the  gospel,  the 
Son  of  God,  made  of  the  seed  of  David  after  the  flesh ; 
and,  in  the  bosom  of  humanity  in  death,  declared  to  be 
the  Son  of  God  by  resurrection,*  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord." 

6.  "J^sus  Christ  our  Lord,  through  Whom 
we  receive  grace  and  apostleship"  (4,  5,  R.  V.). 
Mr.  Darby  continues : 

"The  gospel  was  the  gospel  of  God  Himself;  but  it 
is  by  Jesus  Christ  the  Lord  that  the  apostle  received 
his  mission.  He  was  the  head  of  the  work,  and  sent 
forth  the  labourers  into  the  harvest  which  they  were 
to  reap  in  the  world.  The  object  of  his  mission,  and 
its  extent,  was  the  obedience  of  faith  (  not  obedience  to 
the  law)  among  all  nations,  establishing  the  authority 
and  the  value  of  the  name  of  Christ.  It  was  this  name 
which  should  prevail  and  be  acknowledged. 


*"It  is  not  said  *by  His  resurrection,'  but  *by  resur- 
rection' abstractly.  His  own  was  the  great  proof;  but 
that  of  every  man  is  a  proof  likewise"  (Mr.  Darb/s 
note). 


12  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

"The  gospel  according  to  Paul,"  says  Dr. 
Stifler,  "is  universal.  It  is  not  Jewish,  but  world- 
wide, a  gospel  for  the  Gentiles,  for  by  resurrec- 
tion Jesus  transcended  all  Jewish  connection  and 
became  the  world's  Saviour,  a  Saviour  not  by  the 
obedience  to  law  which  was  Mosaic,  but  by  the 
power  of  an  endless  life.  Life  is  universal.  Thus 
Paul,  by  linking  his  apostolate  with  the  raised 
Christ,  gives  first  the  character  of  his  epistle,  and 
secondly  its  scope.  It  is  the  epistle  of  divine  life 
in  Christ  for  all  nations,  on  the  condition  of 
faith/' 

7.  *' Among  whom  are  ye  also"  (6,  7).  The 
children  of  God  are  here  defined  as : 
.  (i)  "The  called  of  Jesus  Christ"  (6).  Not, 
as  in  R.  V.,  "called  to  be  Jesus  Christ's :"  they 
were  already  His — His  called  ones.  His  bidden 
ones.    Also,  they  are: 

(2)  "Beloved  of  God"  (7).  Surely  they  are 
that.  As  Jude  puts  it,  all  who  have  come  to  God 
by  Jesus  Christ  are  "called,  beloved  in  God  the 
Father,  and  kept  for  Jesus  Christ"  (Jude  i,  R. 
v.).    But,  further,  they  are, 

(3)  *'Called  saints"  (7).  Here  again  we  have 
the  question  raised  in  the  first  verse.  Christians 
— God's  children  by  the  new  birth — are  saints. 
They  are  not  called  to  become  saints;  they  be- 
came saints,  instantaneously,  at  their  new  birth. 
This  fact  is  set  forth  everywhere  in  the  New 
Testament;  and  yet  there  is  much  confusion 
among  the  translators.  Weymouth,  for  example, 
after  rendering  the  phrase  in  verse  7,  "called  to 


PROLOGUE.  13 

be  saints,"  without  intimating  that  he  has  sup- 
plied the  words  "to  be"  (which  are  certainly  not 
in  the  original),  says  in  a  footnote, 

"Herein  consists  the  supreme  glory  and  supreme  diffi- 
culty of  the  Christian  life— that  we  are  not  simply  to 
speak  of  Christ  to  others,  and,  if  need  be,  do  and  dare 
great  things  for  Him.  By  the  power  of  His  own  most 
holy  Spirit  within  us  we  are  to  be  saints." 

Undoubtedly  we  are  called  upon  to  live  ''as  be- 
cometh  saints"  (Rom.  16:  2),  but  it  is  highly  im- 
portant to  see  that  if  we  have  received  the  gift 
of  eternal  life  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord  we 
are  already  saints — God's  holy  ones,  set  apart  for 
Him,  belonging  to  Him,  saints  by  His  own  desig- 
nation. His  own  calling — called  saints.  As  Mr. 
Darby  observes,  "  'called  to  be  saints'  is  not  the 
meaning  of  the  passage."  He  translates,  with 
Young  and  many  others,  "called  saints,"  and  de- 
fines the  phrase  as  meaning  "saints  by  calling." 

8.  "Grace  to  you  and  peace"  (7).  This  is 
ever  the  message  for  the  saints,  "from  God  our 
Father,  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

IL  The  Introduction  (8-17). 

I.  '*First,  I  thank  my  God,"  etc.,  (8).  It  is 
the  Spirit's  way  to  first  of  all  point  out  things  to 
be  commended ;  and  this  is  true  even  in  the  case 
of  epistles  containing  much  severe  censure,  as, 
for  example,  ist  Corinthians.  The  occasion  for 
thanksgiving  in  the  case  before  us  is  that  the 
Roman  Christians  were  widely  known  for  their 


14  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

faith.  That  was  surely  something  for  which  to 
be  thankful.  If  the  faith  is  held  pure,  the  works 
will  be  forthcoming. 

2.  "I  long  to  see  you"  (ii).  There  were 
those  who  declared  that  Paul  had  neither  desire 
nor  intention  to  visit  Rome.  His  message,  they 
said,  might  do  well  enough  for  the  provinces,  but 
it  would  never  do  in  Rome.  Rome  was  too  well 
informed,  too  cultured,  too  sophisticated,  to  be 
caught  with  such  a  message !  But  Paul  here  ex- 
presses a  sincere  longing  to  come  to  Rome. 

3.  "I  purposed  to  come  unto  you  and  was 
hindered  hitherto"  (13,  i^.  F.).  In  a  similar 
passage  (i  Thes.  2:  18),  Paul  had  declared  that 
he  had  been  hindered  by  Satan  from  visiting 
Thessalonica ;  doubtless  that  is  his  meaning  here 
(compare  also  Rom.  15:22). 

4.  "I  am  debtor"  (14).  To  be  sure!  And  so 
is  every  Christian  a  debtor,  to  give  the  gospel  to 
the  whole  world  as  rapidly  as  possible. 

5.  "I  am  ready"  (15).  That  is  a  splendid 
companion-piece  to  the  "I  am  debtor." 

6.  "I  am  not  ashamed"  (16,  17).  No  one  can 
be  ashamed  of  the  gospel,  though  it  is  natural 
to  be  ashamed  of  some  things  that  pass  for  the 
gospel.    Paul  was  not  ashamed, 

(i)  Because  of  the  nature  of  the  gospel:  "it 
is  the  power  of  God."  It  is  unthinkable  that  any 
man  should  be  ashamed  of  power — least  of  all, 
God's  power;  and  the  gospel  is  just  that:  God's 
power.    Again,  Paul  was  not  ashamed, 


PROLOGUB.  15 

(2)  Because  of  the  aim  of  the  gospel:  it  is 
"unto  salvation."  And  it  always  brings  salvation 
— from  the  penalty,  from  the  power,  and  finally 
from  the  very  presence  of  sin — wherever  it  is  re- 
ceived.   Moreover,  Paul  was  not  ashamed, 

(3)  Because  of  the  scope  of  the  gospel:  it  is 
to  every  one  that  believeth."  No  one  is  barred ; 
whosoever  will  may  come.  Further,  Paul  was 
not  ashamed, 

(4)  Because  of  the  sole  condition  attached  to 
the  gospel :  it  brings  "salvation  to  every  one  that 
believeth."  This  is  all  worked  out  in  detail 
further  on  in  the  epistle.  Finally,  Paul  was  not 
ashamed, 

(5)  Because  of  the  revelation  of  the  gospel: 
"For  therein  is  the  righteousness  of  God  re- 
vealed." This  gospel  revelation  of  God's  right- 
eousness, bestowed  as  a  gift  to  men  of  faith,  is  all 
worked  out  in  its  proper  place  further  on.  Here 
it  is  mentioned  as  the  fulfilment  of  an  Old  Testa- 
ment prophecy:  "The  just  shall  live  by  faith" 
(Hab.  2:4),  and  perhaps  also  to  mark  the  sharp 
contrast  between  this  gracious  gospel  revelation 
and  the  terrible  revelation  of  God's  wrath  so 
vividly  described  in  the  language  that  follows. 


FIRST   MAIN   DIVISION:    THE   SIN   OF 
THE  WORLD 


(i:  i8  to  3:20) 


Sin  is  now  brought  before  us.  The  naked,  hor- 
rid facts  are  dragged  out  and  made  to  stand  forth 
in  the  blazing  Hght  of  God's  holy  wrath.  This  is 
needful  and  wholesome:  for  if  we  are  ever  to 
know  the  blessedness  of  God's  remedy  for  the 
evil,  we  must  first  know  something  of  the  reality 
of  the  evil,  and  realize  in  some  measure  its  enor- 
mity. 

This  terrible  arraignment  of  guilty  man  at  the 
bar  of  God  is  set  forth  in  three  subdivisions :  ( i ) 
The  guilt  of  the  Gentiles;  (2)  The  guilt  of  the 
Jews;  and  (3)  Every  mouth  stopped. 

I.  The  Guilt  of  the  Gentiles  (i:  18-32). 

I.  "The  wrath  of  God  is  revealed  from  heav- 
en" (18).  There  are,  then,  two  revelations  from 
heaven  (compare  verses  17  and  18).  And,  until 
the  matter  is  explained,  these  revelations  bring 
only  terror  to  guilty  man.  The  very  last  things 
he  wants  to  be  reminded  of  are  God's  righteous- 
ness and  God's  wrath.  He  has  yet  to  learn  the 
marvel  of  the  gospel,  by  which  God's  righteous- 
ness actually  becomes  God's  gift  to  sinful  man, 
16 


THB  SIN  OF  THE  WORLD.  17 

and  God's  wrath  gives  place  to  God's  loving- 
kindness.  Meanwhile  the  divine  wrath  is  di- 
rected ''against  all  ungodliness  and  unrighteous- 
ness of  men,  who  hold  the  truth  in  unrighteous- 
ness." Ungodliness  is  the  absence  of  conformity 
to  the  will  of  God.  It  leads  to  unrighteousness 
as  to  men's  relation  with  each  other.  Beins:  not 
right  with  God,  they  cannot  be  right  in  their  deal- 
ings with  one  another.  Then,  too,  they  will  not 
heed  the  facts.  They  "hold  the  truth  in  unright- 
eousness." Literally,  it  reads,  as  in  the  Revision, 
that  they  "hold  down  the  truth  in  unrighteous- 
ness." The  natural  heart  is  desperately  wicked 
(Jer.  17:9),  and  it  will  not  fairly  face  the 
truth.  This  is  the  universal  rule,  whether  the 
truth  be  revealed  through  the  light  of  nature,  or 
the  moral  sense,  or  the  preaching  of  the  gospel. 
Men  hate  the  truth:  the  carnal  mind  is  enmity 
against  God;  man  holds  down  the  truth  in  un- 
righteousness (compare  Heb.  10:26-31;  2  Pet. 
2 :  21,  22).  In  the  passage  we  are  just  now  con- 
sidering it  is  shown  that  the  Gentiles  are  thus 
guilty  of  turning  from  the  truth,  even  before  the 
gospel  is  preached  to  them.  They  are  guilty,  and 
the  wrath  of  God  is  resting  upon  them.  The  rea- 
sons for  this  are  strong  ones. 

2.  "Because  that  which  may  be  known  of 
God  is  manifest  in  them ;  for  God  manifested  it 
unto  them"  (19).  Men  may  speak  of  "the  dim 
light  of  nature,"  but  God  does  not  so  describe  it. 

3.  "For  the  invisible  things  of  Him  since  the 
creation  of  the  world  are  clearly  seen"  (20). 


i8  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Not  dimly,  but  clearly.     And  they  are  not  only 
seen,  but  understood. 

4.  "Being  understood  by  the  things  that  are 
made"  (20).  This  is  the  argument  of  the  19th 
Psalm :  "The  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God ; 
and  the  firmament  sheweth  His  handywork." 
Two  things  about  God  are  thus  ''clearly  seen"  and 
"understood"  by  the  heathen,  whether  they  be 
evangelized  or  unevangelized — two  things,  re- 
vealed "by  the  things  that  are  made :"  ( i )  "even 
His  eternal  power"  and  (2)  His  "Godhead." 
That  is  to  say,  it  is  revealed  through  nature  itself 
that  there  is  a  Creator,  and  that  that  Creator  is 
God.    He  ought,  then,  to  be  worshipped. 

5.  "So  that  they  are  without  excuse"  (20). 
There  you  have,  in  a  word,  God's  own  pronounce- 
ment concerning  the  guilt  of  the  heathen  world : 
"They  are  without  excuse."  This  he  proceeds  to 
prove  by  setting  forth  in  detail  the  awful  facts 
of  the  world's  history  in  connection  with  its  re- 
lation to  God  from  the  beginning.  There  is  here 
no  "Ascent  of  Man."  According  to  this  truthful 
record,  man  did  not  rise  from  protoplasm  toward 
the  likeness  of  God.  Far  from  it!  God  Himself 
tells  us  here  that  man  has  been  going  downward 
instead  of  upward.  In  the  beginning  he  was  in 
fellowship  with  God.  From  this  high  estate  he 
fell,  and  his  fall  was  complete.  The  apostasy  of 
the  Gentile  world  is  here  set  forth  in  seven  stages. 
And  these  are  given  as  seven  sufficient  reasons 
for  the  declaration  that  men  "are  without  ex- 
cuse."   They  were  without  excuse — 


THU  SIN  OF  THE  WORLD.  19 

(i)  "Because  that,  when  they  knew  God, 
they  glorified  Him  not  as  God,  neither  were 
thankful"  (21).  This  in  itself  is  a  scathing  ar- 
raignment. Man  in  the  beginning  knew  God: 
what  a  wonderful  privilege!'  It  is  life  to  know 
Him  (Jno.  17  :  3),  and  this  was  surely  great  cause 
for  rejoicing  and  thanksgiving;  but  man  utterly 
failed  to  maintain  himself  in  this  position  of  grace. 
He  glorified  not  God  as  God,  and  he  was  ungrate- 
ful. Real  thanksgiving  toward  God  is  altogether 
absent  from  the  heart  of  the  natural  man  to  this 
day ;  and  even  among  the  chilren  of  God  it  is  all 
too  rare  (see  Col.  3:  15). 

(2)  "But  became  vain  in  their  imaginations, 
and  their  foolish  heart  was  darkened"  (21). 
The  Revisers  here  read,  "became  vain  in  their 
reasonings,  and  their  senseless  heart  was  dark- 
ened." Man  is  always  prone  to  turn  to  reason, 
rather  than  to  God.  Preferring  the  tree  of  knowl- 
edge to  the  tree  of  life,  the  inevitable  result  is 
that  he  became  vain  and  puffed  up  ( i  Cor.  8:1). 
The  end  of  this  process  is  darkness.  The  way  into 
light  is  not  by  knowledge,  but  by  faith.  Men 
must  believe  God,  or  walk  in  darkness. 

(3)  "Professing  themselves  to  be  wise,  they 
became  fools"  (22).  They  were  manifestly  out 
of  God's  way,  for  it  is  never  His  way  to  reveal 
spiritual  truth  by  means  of  worldly  wisdom  (i 
Cor.  1:18-25). 

(4)  "And  changed  the  glory  of  the  uncor- 
ruptible God  into  an  image  made  like  to  cor- 
ruptible man"  (23).  This  is  the  first  step  in  idol- 


20  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

atry — to  represent  God  as  being  like  man.  It 
grows  out  of  the  lie  of  the  serpent :  "Ye  shall  be 
as  God." 

(5)  "And  to  birds"  (23).  For  idolatry  does 
not  stop  with  its  first  step.  It  progresses,  and  its 
progress  is  always  progress  in  degradation. 

(6)  "And  fourfooted  beasts"  (23).  Yet  an- 
other downward  step. 

(7)  *'And  creeping  things"  (23).  "The 
odiousness  of  idolatry,"  says  Dr.  Stifler,  "is  not 
alone  in  the  immorality  to  which  it  leads,  but  that 
it  is  a  caricature  of  God  and  a  slander.  It  be- 
longs to  His  glory  that  He  is  imperishable.  He 
was  likened  to  that  which  is  corruptible.  The 
very  material  of  the  image  was  a  dishonour,  as  if 
one  should  erect  a  statute  to  a  distinguished  man 
to-day  not  in  marble  or  bronze,  but  in  chalk  or 
putty.  To  liken  God  to  man  is  idolatry.  Men 
were  to  make  no  image  of  Him.  Had  they  pre- 
served their  original  conception  of  Him  they 
would  not  have  attempted  it.  In  due  time  He 
gave  an  image  of  Himself  in  a  sinless  Being  Who 
was  animated  with  eternal  life,  'the  brightness  of 
His  glory,  and  the  express  image  of  His  person' 
(Heb.  1:3).  If  Jesus  was  not  more  than  mortal. 
He  was  an  idol.  These  professed  sages  did  not 
stop  with  likening  God  to  man ;  they  figured  Him 
as  a  bird,  then  as  a  quadruped,  and  finally  as  a 
reptile.  There  was  the  Apollo  of  the  Greeks,  the 
eagle  of  the  Romans,  the  bull  of  the  Egyptians, 
and  the  serpent  of  the  Assyrians.  Paul  may  be 
giving  in  this  verse  (23)  the  historical  develop- 


THE  SIN  OF  THB  WORLD.  21 

ment  of  idolatry,  from  its  highest  phase  to  its 
worst;  or  he  may  be  setting* it  forth  in  cHmactic 
form;  but  certain  it  is  that  all  these  phases  of  the 
sin  existed.  In  this  review  of  the  world's  religion 
from  the  beginning,  Paul  teaches  that  man  at  the 
first  was  not  an  idolater.  The  origin  of  this  sin 
is  not  contemporaneous  with  the  appearance  of 
man  on  the  globe.  Man  did  not  work  his  way 
from  fetishism  through  polytheism  up  to  mono- 
theism and  the  worship  of  the  true  God.  His 
course  was  the  reverse.  From  the  beginning  he 
did  not  grow  better  religiously,  but  worse.  The 
Bible  gives  no  evidence  of  idolatry  among  the 
antediluvians.  Men  in  that  age  called  on  the 
name  of  the  Lord  (Gen.  4:26).  The  earliest 
mention  of  idolatry  belongs  to  the  days  of  Abra- 
ham (Josh.  24:2).  Paul  here  gives  the  history 
and  origin  of  idolatry.  Men  knew  God  and  re- 
fused to  worship  Him.  Idolatry  followed  as  a 
psychological  necessity.  If  there  is  a  force  of 
development  inherent  in  man,  a  force  tending  up- 
ward, the  gospel  of  the  grace  of  God  is  an  im- 
pertinence, and  Paul  might  well  be  ashamed  of  it. 
And  why  has  not  this  force  manifested  itself 
somewhat  in  the  last  two  thousand  years  in 
Africa,  in  India,  and  in  China?  The  idolatry  of 
to-day  is  no  better  than  that  which  grieved  Paul" 
C'The  Epistle  to  the  Romam/'  by  J.  M.  Stifler). 
6.  "Wherefore  God  also  gave  them,  up  to  un- 
cleanness"  (24,  25).  God's  call  is  not  to  un- 
cleanness  but  to  holiness  (i  Thes.  4:7).  And 
when  there  is  response  to  His  call,  He  directs  our 


22  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

steps  in  the  way  of  holiness.  But  when  the  truth 
of  God  is  exchanged  for  a  lie,  and  when  worship 
is  accorded  to  the  creature  instead  of  the  Creator, 
it  must  follow  that  men  become  ''slaves  to  un- 
cleanness,  and  to  iniquity  unto  iniquity"  (Rom. 
6:  19).  And  could  anything  be  sadder  than  to 
read,  "Wherefore  God  gave  them  up  ?" 

7.  "For  this  cause  God  gave  them  up  unto 
vile  passions"  (26,  27).  Let  Dr.  Stifler  again 
speak  here.  "This,"  he  says  (Ibid.),  "is  the  next 
long  step  downward.  Originally  man  was  chaste, 
but  when  he  cast  God  off,  his  animal  passions 

were  unchained Twice  in  these  verses  we 

are  told  that  'God  gave  them  up,'  not  passively, 
but  actively.  The  reason  is  again  given :  'Who 
changed  the  truth  of  God  into  the  lie'  of  idolatry. 
They  did  not  change  a  lie  into  truth.  Man's 
course  was  not  in  that  direction.  They  took  'the 
truth  of  God'  which  He  gave  them  and  perverted 
it  to  the  falsehood  of  idol-worship.  This  was  the 
cause  of  that  vileness  whose  hideous  description 
we  have  here.  'For  even  their  women!'  There 
is  point  in  that  word  'even.'  Woman  is  the  purer, 
the  more  modest,  of  the  sexes,  has  propensities 
less  ardent;  but  even  she  became  worse  than 
beastly  and  equaled  vile  man  in  his  depravity. 
The  corruption  that  got  into  the  blood  of  the  race 
by  the  fall  did  not  show  itself  at  once.  The  earlier 
families  and  tribes  of  the  world  were  pure ;  God 
kept  them  so.  Whatever  morality  there  is  in  the 
world  is  due  not  to  human  nature,  but  to  the  re- 
straining power  of  God.    When  God  'gave  them 


THB  SIN  OF  THE  WORLD.  23 

up/  the  original  corruption  in  the  blood  showed 
itself  in  foul  moral  ulcers,  and  human  virtue 
proved  to  be  less  than  that  of  the  beasts  of  the 
field,  among  which  the  barriers  of  sex  are  not 
crossed." 

8.  "And  even  as  they  refused  to  have  God  in 
their  knowledge,  God  gave  them  up  unto  a 
reprobate  mind"  (28-32).  And  behold  where 
that  "reprobate  mind"  has  taken  them.  The  cli- 
max is  reached  in  the  final  verse  of  the  chapter, 
which  is  also  a  summing  up  of  the  whole  case 
against  the  Gentile  world.  Men  know  the  judg- 
ment of  God  against  sin,  that  its  sure  wages  is 
death ;  and  yet  they  not  only  go  on  in  sin,  but 
actually  take  pleasure  in  the  depravity  of  others. 
This  is  the  state  of  "things  as  they  are."  To  meet 
this  condition  calls  for  a  remedy  of  tremendous 
power,  even  "the  power  of  God." 

II.  The  Guilt  of  the:  Ji:ws  (2 : 1-29). 

I.  "Therefore  thou  art  inexcusable"  (i).  In 
chapter  i  the  Gentiles  were  shown  to  be  without 
excuse,  and  here  the  same  indictment  is  brought 
against  the  Jew — "thou  art  without  excuse"  {R. 
v.),  "The  address,"  says  Alford,  "passes  grad- 
ually to  the  Jews.  They  were  the  people  who 
judged — who  pronounced  all  Gentiles  to  be  born 
in  sin  and  under  condemnation :  doubtless  there 
were  also  proud  and  censorious  men  among  the 
Gentiles,  to  whom  the  rebuke  might  apply,  but 
these  are  hardly  in  the  apostle's  mind.  This  is 
evident  by  comparing  the  charge,  'thou  that  judg- 


24  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

est  doest  the  same  things,'  with  vs.  21-23,  where 
the  same  charge  is  imphed  in  a  direct  address  to 
the  Jew.'' 

"In  depicting  the  sin  of  the  Gentile  in  the  first 
chapter,"  says  Dr.  Stifler,  "Paul  did  not  name 
him.  It  was  not  necessary.  The  picture  was  so 
true  to  Hfe  that  no  one  could  fail  to  see  who  sat 
for  it.  The  author  has  been  assured  more  than 
once  by  returned  missionaries  from  China  and 
India  that  when  this  first  chapter  was  read  to  in- 
telligent natives  of  these  heathen  lands  they  have 
hesitated  to  believe  that  it  was  from  the  mission- 
ary's sacred  Book,  suspecting  that  the  missionary 
had  written  it  himself  as  a  description  of  what  he 
had  seen  since  he  came  among  them.  In  this  sec- 
ond chapter  Paul  has  no  one  but  the  Jew  in  view. 
He  does  not  mention  his  name  until  the  discussion 
has  advanced  some  distance.  It  was  easy  to 
prove  the  Gentile  a  sinner.  He  claimed  nothing 
for  himself,  and  his  immorality  was  patent  to 
every  eye;  Paul  had  only  to  point  to  the  facts. 
But  in  the  case  of  the  Jew  all  was  different.  He 
had  a  divinely-given  system  of  religion.  In  the 
letter  it  was  never  better  observed  than  when 
Paul  wrote.  The  Jew  as  a  son  of  Abraham  con- 
sidered himself  righteous  by  the  law.  To  con- 
vince him  of  sin  was  no  easier  than  it  is  to-day  to 
convince  a  hollow  Christianity  of  its  fatal  error. 
Paul  has  still  his  statement  in  view,  that  the  gos- 
pel is  the  only  power  of  God  for  salvation,  and 
nothing  to  be  ashamed  of.    If  Judaism  can  save 


THE  SIN  OF  THE  WORLD.  25 

men,  the  gospel  is  an  impertinence;    hence  the 
radical  failure  of  the  Jew  must  be  shown." 

2.  "The  judgment  of  God  is  according  to 
truth"  (2).  This  is  the  first  of  four  principles 
here  laid  down  as  to  the  judgment  of  God.  The 
Jew  must  not  suppose  that  merely  because  he 
knew  the  will  of  God  he  therefore  was  safe  from 
judgment.  If  he  knew  the  Word  of  God,  he  must 
know  that  by  that  Word  he  should  be  judged 
(compare  Jno.  12:47,  4^)- 

3.  "To  every  man  according  to  his  deeds" 
(6).  This  is  the  second  principle  of  judgment: 
it  shall  not  be  according  to  how  much  a  man  may 
know,  but  according  to  what  he  has  done  about  it 
— according  to  his  deeds.  Of  course,  this  is  not 
the  gospel :  that  is  to  come  later ;  here  the  point 
is  that  the  Jew,  as  well  as  the  Gentile,  is  in  sore 
need  of  the  gospel. 

4.  "For  there  is  no  respect  of  persons  with 
God"  (11).  This  is  the  third  principle  of  judg- 
ment: it  will  be  strictly  impartial  (compare 
Deut.  10:17;  Ezk.  18:4;  Ac.  10:34;  Rom.  3: 
29,  30;  10:12,  13).  The  Gentiles  who  have 
sinned  without  the  law  must  perish,  for  "the 
wages  of  sin  is  death ;"  and  the  Jews  who  have 
sinned  under  the  law  must  likewise  perish,  for 
"the  wages  of  sin  is  death."  Do  not  make  the 
mistake  here  of  reading  "gospel"  for  "law."  This 
is  to  miss  the  point  entirely.  What  the  Spirit  by 
the  apostle  is  showing  is  that  apart  from  the  gos- 
pel there  could  no  flesh  be  saved,  either  Gentile  or 
Jew.    He  is  paving  the  way  for  the  gospel. 


26  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

5.  "In  the  day  when  God  shall  judge  the 
secrets  of  men  by  Jesus  Christ  according  to  my 
gospel"   (16).     This  is  the  fourth  principle  of 

I  judgment:  ''according  to  my  gospel."  Not  ac- 
cording to  the  law,  thank  God !  for  then  no  flesh 
could  be  saved.  As  for  the  Jews — "the  hearers 
of  the  law"  (v.  13) — they  could  not  be  justified, 
for  they  had  not  done  the  law;  and  as  for  the 
Gentiles,  who  had  not  the  law  (v.  14),  they  were 
nevertheless  condemned,  for  all  had  "sinned  with- 
out law."  This  will  all  be  brought  out  "in  the 
day  when  God  shall  judge  the  secrets  of  men." 
Ah,  who  can  stand  in  such  a  day  as  that? — "the 
day  of  wrath  and  revelation  of  the  righteous 
judgment  of  God !"  Only  righteousness  will  pass 
muster  in  that  day — real  righteousness,  right- 
eousness of  the  heart,  righteousness  even  as  to 
"the  secrets  of  men!"  "Because  He  hath  ap- 
pointed a  day  in  the  which  He  will  judge  the 
world  in  righteousness  by  that  Man  whom  He 
hath  ordained ;  whereof  He  hath  given  assurance 
unto  all  men  in  that  He  hath  raised  Him  from  the 
dead"  (Ac.  17:31).  Except  for  the  gospel,  not 
a  man  could  stand  in  that  day.  And  we  have  not 
yet  come  to  the  gospel.  Let  us  first  see  the  great 
need  for  it. 

6.  "Behold,  thou  art  called  a  Jew"  ( 17) .  The 
implication  here  is  that  one  might  be  called  a  Jew 
without  being  a  Jew.  Paul  is  proving  that  the 
so-called  Jew  is  a  helpless  sinner  in  spite  of  all 
his  boastings.  He  rested  in  the  law,  utterly  fail- 
ing to  recognize  it  as  an  instruction  in  righteous- 


THE  SIN  OF  THE  WORLD.  27 

ness  (2  Tim.  3  :  16)  ;  and  made  his  boast  of  God, 
forgetting  that  God  is  a  just  God ;  he  knew  His 
will  (18),  and  it  never  occurred  to  him  that  he 
ought  to  be  obeying  that  will ;  he  was  a  student 
of  the  Scriptures,  able  to  "distinguish  the  things 
that  differ"  (18,  R.  V.,  margin),  being  instructed 
out  of  the  law ;  he  was  therefore  confident  that 
he  was  a  guide  of  the  blind,  a  light  of  them  (the 
Gentiles)  which  were  in  darkness  (19),  an  in- 
structor of  the  fooHsh,  a  teacher  of  babes,  having 
the  form  of  knowledge  and  of  the  truth  in  the 
law  (20).  Here  is  a  complete  picture  of  what  the 
Jew  thought  of  himself.  What  God  thought  of 
him  was  another  matter :  the  Holy  Spirit  is  here 
proving  him  a  lost  sinner.    Let  us  see. 

7.  "Teachest  thou  not  thyself?"  (21).  Evi- 
dently the  Jews  had  not  thought  of  that.  For  the 
name  of  God  was  blasphemed  among  the  Gentiles 
through  them  (v.  24),  as  had  been  written  of 
them  beforehand  (Isa.  52:5;    Ezk.  36:20). 

8.  "For  circumcision  verily  profiteth,  if  thou 
keep  the  law"  (25).  A  big  and  important  "if," 
surely!  The  Jew  must  learn  that  circumcision 
in  itself  could  not  save ;  it  was  after  all  only  the 
sign  of  the  covenant.  "  'But,'  says  the  replier, 
'circumcision  is  a  great  fact.'  *I  confess  It,'  re- 
joins the  apostle,  'but  when?  When  a  man  has 
that  which  is  inward  in  the  heart.'  And  see  here 
the  apostle's  wisdom,  how  fittingly  he  has  intro- 
duced his  argument  about  it.  He  did  not  begin 
with  it  at  once,  since  it  was  held  in  such  great  esti- 
mation :   but  when  he  has  shown  that  they  were 


28  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

offenders  in  a  still  greater  matter,  and  were  guilty 
of  blasphemy  towards  God,  then  at  length,  hav- 
ing secured  his  readers'  condemnation  of  them, 
and  having  lowered  them  from  their  pre-emi- 
nence, he  introduces  his  argument  about  circum- 
cision, confident  that  no  one  ever  will  be  found 
as  its  unlimited  apologist"  (Chrysostom). 

9.  "For  he  is  not  a  Jew,  which  is  one  out- 
wardly" (28,  29).  This  summing  up  should  be 
connected  with  the  17th  verse.  "Behold,  thou  art 
called  a  Jew."  Well,  "he  is  not  a  Jew,  which  is 
one  outwardly;  neither  is  that  circumcision, 
which  is  outward  in  the  flesh:  but  he  is  a  Jew, 
which  is  one  inwardly;  and  circumcision  is  that 
of  the  heart,  in  the  spirit,  and  not  in  the  letter; 
whose  praise  is  not  of  men,  but  of  God."  This 
goes  to  the  core  of  the  matter.  "Behold,  Thou 
desirest  truth  in  the  inward  parts"  (Ps.  51:6). 
The  circumcision  which  is  merely  outward  is  in 
God's  sight  only  "the  concision."  The  true  cir- 
cumcision consists  of  those  "which  worship  God 
in  the  Spirit,  and  rejoice  in  Christ  Jesus,  and 
have  no  confidence  in  the  flesh"  (Phil.  3:2,  3). 

III.  Every  Mouth  Stopped  (3: 1-20). 

I.  "What  advantage  then  hath  the  Jew?" 

(i,  2).  Paulj  in  the  question  and  answer  given 
here,  is  dealing  with  an  imaginary  objector,  as 
he  often  does  in  his  writings.  This  objector,  re- 
plying to  the  sweeping  indictment  against  the 
Jew  in  chapter  2,  asks  what,  then,  is  the  use  of 
being  a  Jew ;  what  profit  is  there  of  circumcision  ? 


THE  SIN  OP  THE  WORLD.  29 

If  it  does  not  save,  what  is  the  use  of  it  ?  To  this 
the  answer  is  "Much  every  way :  first  of  all,  that 
they  were  intrusted  with  the  oracles  of  God" 
{R.  v.).    That  was  surely  a  great  honour.. 

2.  "For  what  if  some  did  not  believe?"  (3, 4) . 
The  King  James  Version  is  decidedly  weak  here. 
The  American  Revision  reads:  *'For  what  if 
some  were  without  faith?  shall  their  want  of 
faith  make  of  none  effect  the  faithfulness  of  God  ? 
God  forbid:  yea,  let  God  be  found  true,  but 
every  man  a  liar."  The  191 1  Bible  is  even  bet- 
ter: "For  what  if  some  did  not  believe?  shall 
their  faithlessness  destroy  God's  faithfulness? 
God  forbid !  nay,  let  God  be  true,  though  every 
man  be  false ;  as  it  is  written.  That  Thou  mightest 
be  justified  in  Thy  sayings,  and  mightest  over- 
come when  Thou  art  judged."  This  citation  from 
the  51st  Psalm  voices  the  sentiment  of  every  true 
child  of  God:  Let  God  be  justified  at  all  events! 
The  ways  of  Jehovah  are  right  ways!  He  is 
faithful ! 

3.  "Is  God  unrighteous?"  (5).  This  from  the 
objector:  as  Paul  explains,  "I  speak  as  a  man." 
The  issue  raised  is  this :  If  God's  righteousness 
is  made  manifest  by  men's  unrighteousness,  then 
God  does  wrong  in  taking  vengeance.  The  an- 
swer is  ready :  "God  forbid !  for  then  how  shall 
God  judge  the  world  ?"  This  is  a  reference,  doubt- 
less, to  Gen.  18:25,  where  Abraham  puts  the 
question  to  Jehovah,  "Shall  not  the  Judge  of  all 
the  earth  do  right?"  (compare  also  Ac.  17:31). 
What  an  unspeakable  calamity  it  would  be  if  God 


30  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

should  ever  do  wrong !  Let  God  be  found  true ! 
4.  "Why  yet  am  I  also  judged?"  (7,  8). 
Again,  the  objector.  His  point  now  is  that  if  the 
truth  (i.  e.,  the  truthfulness)  of  God  has  been 
made  more  manifest  and  glorious  by  the  untruth- 
fulness of  men,  then  men  ought  not  to  be  con- 
demned, but  commended  instead.  And  in  that 
case  it  would  be  better  to  go  on  in  evil  for  the 
Lord's  sake !  Indeed,  some  had  slanderously  re- 
ported that  Paul  himself  advocated  this  course  of 
conduct :  "Let  us  do  evil  that  good  may  come." 
This  principle  of  Jesuitism  the  apostle  vehe- 
mently repudiates.  "Paul  now  with  one  stroke 
brings  the  whole  objection  to  its  logically  absurd 
conclusion.  If  sin  enhances  the  glory  of  God, 
and  therefore  is  no  longer  guilt,  why,  the  more  we 
sin,  the  brighter  this  grace.  Let  us  do  all  the 
evil  we  can,  for  the  more  evil  the  more  praise  to 
His  name!  Some  had  affirmed  that  this  is  the 
apostle's  own  doctrine.  In  their  righteous  con- 
demnation of  it  they  condemn  themselves  in  the 
claim  that  God  cannot  punish  sin,  because  it  pro- 
motes His  glory,  for  this  claim  is  the  very  essence 
of  the  hateful  sentiment.  And  thus  he  has  come 
around  in  most  skilful  fashion  to  the  assertion 
with  which  he  began  against  the  Jew :  'Thou  art 
inexcusable,  O  man,  whosoever  thou  art  that 
judgest:  for  wherein  thou  judgest  another,  thou 
condemnest  thyself  (2:1).  He  joins  with  them 
in  repudiating  the  godless  maxim,  but  he  does  not 
go  with  them  in  holding  it.  They  'slanderously 
report'  him  who  say  he  does"  (Stifler). 


THE  SIN  OF  THE  WORLD.  31 

5.  "What  then?"  (9-20).  The  argument  of 
the  first  main  division  is  brought  to  a  conclusion 
in  this  paragraph,  and  the  whole  world  is  de- 
clared guilty.  The  query  of  verse  9,  "What  then  ? 
are  we  better  than  they?"  is  probably  a  wrong 
reading.  The  marginal  rendering  in  the  191 1 
Bible  is  better,  "What  then?  do  we  excuse  our- 
selves ?"  The  meaning  of  the  question  is  evident- 
ly this :  "What  then  ?  Have  we  an  excuse  ?  Is 
there  any  excuse  left?  Is  there  any  escape  from 
the  final  verdict  of  universal  guilt?"  This,  at 
any  rate,  is  the  question  answered  in  the  verses 
that  follow :  "No,  in  no  wise !  for  we  have  be- 
fore accused  both  Jews  and  Greeks,  that  they  are 
all  under  sin"  (9).  He  does  not  say,  with  the 
King  James  Version,  that  he  has  proved  this: 
he  has  only  "laid  it  to  their  charge"  (R.  V.),  and 
he  is  now  about  to  bring  forth  the  proof.  For 
this  he  goes  to  the  Scripture : 

(i)  "There  is  none  righteous,  no,  not  one!" 
(10-12).  The  first  proof,  to  the  end  of  the  12th 
verse,  is  taken  from  Psalms  14  and  53.  It  is  God's 
Word,  and  there  is  not  so  much  as  a  single  excep- 
tion to  the  sweeping  declaration.  In  the  whole 
human  race,  not  even  one  solitary  individual  can 
stand  before  God  in  his  own  merit.  "Not  one!" 
None  righteous ;  none  that  understandeth ;  none 
that  seeketh  after  God  ;  all  turned  aside ;  they  are 
together  become  unprofitable ;  there  is  none  that 
doeth  good,  no,  not  so  much  as  ONE  !  So  much 
for  human  character.  Now  what  of  human  con- 
duct? 


32  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

(2)  "Their  throat  is  an  open  sepulchre ;  with 
their  tongues  they  have  used  deceit ;  the  poison 
of  asps  is  under  their  lips :  whose  mouth  is  full 
of  cursing  and  bitterness"  (13,  14).  This  ter- 
rible count  is  taken  from  Ps.  5:9;  140 :  3 ;  and 
10 : 7,  and  it  deals  with  man's  mouth,  as  to  what 
he  speaks.  This  is  an  important  part  of  con- 
duct. But  there  is  another  part.  How  does  man 
act?    What  does  he  do?    Let  us  go  on. 

(3)  "Their  feet  are  swift  to  shed  blood:  de- 
struction and  misery  are  in  their  ways :  and  the 
way  of  peace  have  they  not  known"  (15-17; 
compare  Prov.  1 :  16 ;  6:17;  Isa.  59:7,  8).  Man's 
actions,  then,  are  no  better  in  God's  sight  than 
his  words.  "So  then  they  that  are  in  the  flesh 
cannot  please  God"  (Rom.  8:8).  Long,  long 
ago,  the  end  of  all  flesh  came  before  Him.  O, 
what  a  need  for  the  gospel !  How  utterly  hope- 
less are  we  without  it ! 

(4)  "There  is  no  fear  of  God  before  their 
eyes"  (18;  compare  Ps.  36:  i).  Here  is  given 
the  reason  for  it  all.  It  was  because  there  was  no 
fear  of  God  before  their  eyes  that  men  departed 
so  far  from  Him.  It  was  the  same  with  the  Jew 
as  with  the  Gentile :  "When  they  knew  God,  they 
glorified  Him  not  as  God,  neither  were  thankful" 
(Rom.  1 :  21). 

Now  we  have  come  to  the  end  of  the  indict- 
ment against  the  world.  As  for  the  Gentile,  he 
was  declared  guilty  and  without  excuse  in  chap- 
ter I ;  and  the  law  itself  settled  the  matter  for  the 
Jew :    "it  speaketh  to  them  that  are  under  the. 


THE  SIN  OF  THE  WORLD.  zz 

law ;"  with  the  result  that  every  mouth  is  stopped, 
and  the  whole  world  is  brought  in  guilty  before 
God. 

The  word  "Therefore"  in  verse  20  should  read 
"Because."  The  meaning  is  that  the  whole  world 
is  brought  in  guilty  because  no  flesh  is  justified 
by  works.  Judged  by  their  own  merits,  as  to 
their  deeds,  Gentile  and  Jew  alike  are  guilty. 
This  is  the  end  of  the  matter:  God  has  spoken, 
and  He  is  the  righteous  Judge  of  all  the  earth. 
He  says :  "Guilty !" 

This  ends  the  first  main  division  of  the  epistle. 
Sin  has  done  its  deadly  work,  and  man  is  lost,  and 
undone,  and  guilty  before  God.  Unless  grace 
find  a  way  out,  there  is  no  hope.  Through  the 
law  has  come  only  the  knowledge  of  sin ;  through 
the  law  there  never  can  come  salvation.  But, 
thanks  be  to  God !  He  has  found  a  way  out ! 
This  we  shall  see  in  the  next  section. 


SECOND  MAIN  DIVISION :   THE  RIGHT- 
EOUSNESS OF  GOD 


(3:21  to  8:  39) 


In  the  foregoing  studies  it  has  been  shown  that 
by  sin  man  had  been  ruined,  and  rendered  utterly 
unable  to  help  himself.  He  was  guilty — every 
man,  without  a  solitary  exception — and  could  do 
nothing  to  make  himself  acceptable  to  God. 
Judged  by  his  own  works — surely  a  righteous 
judgment — he  was  condemned. 

The  Gentiles  were  guilty,  because  when  they 
knew  God  they  glorified  Him  not  as  God,  neither 
were  thankful ;  and  as  a  result  of  this  they  had 
fallen  into  gross  idolatry  and  indescribable  im- 
morality. The  terrible  picture  of  the  state  of 
things  in  the  Gentile  world,  drawn  by  the  Spirit 
of  Truth  in  Rom.  i,  is  reflected  even  in  the  writ- 
ings of  the  heathen  philosophers.  "We  must  say 
of  ourselves,"  said  Seneca,  "that  we  are  evil, 
have  been  evil,  and — unhappily,  I  must  add — 
shall  be  also  in  the  future."  "I  am  tossed,"  said 
the  same  writer,  "upon  a  sea  of  pure  infirmity. 

The  human  mind  is  by  nature  perverse, 

and  strives  after  what  is  forbidden  and  perilous." 
And  he  uttered  a  word  almost  prophetic  when  he 
wrote,  "Nobody  can  deliver  himself;    someone 
must  stretch  out  a  hand  to  lift  him  up." 
34 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  35 

As  for  the  Jew,  he  was  at  least  equally  guilty 
with  the  Gentiles,  for,  with  a  fuller  revelation  of 
God,  he  failed  miserably  to  walk  in  the  light 
vo.uchsafed  to  him.  The  law  had  only  empha- 
sized his  sorry  plight,  for  "through  the  law  is 
the  knowledge  of  sin."  Tested  by  the  law  every 
Jew  must  ultimately  find  himself  in  the  evil  case 
of  Saul  of  Tarsus — Judaism's  finest  specimen — 
and  cry  out,  "O,  wretched  man  that  I  am !  Wlio 
shall  deliver  me?"  The  situation  in  Jewry  had 
become  worse  instead  of  better  since  the  days  of 
the  prophets,  who  had  declared  that  judgment 
was  turned  away  backward,  and  justice  stood 
afar  off;  for  truth  was  fallen  in  the  street,  and 
equity  could  not  enter.  "Yea,  truth  faileth ;  and 
he  that  departeth  from  evil  maketh  himself  a 
prey!"  (Isa.  59:14,  15). 

Thus  the  whole  problem  was  thrust  back  upon 
God  Himself.  And,  blessed  be  His  name!  He 
found  a  way  out.  "Jehovah  saw  it,  and  it  dis- 
pleased Him  that  there  was  no  judgment.  And 
He  saw  that  there  was  no  man,  and  wondered 
that  there  was  no  intercessor :  therefore  His  arm 

BROUGHT  SALVATION  UNTO  HiM  ;  AND  HiS  RIGHT- 
EOUSNESS IT  SUSTAINED  Him"  (Isa.  59:  15,  16). 
He  it  was  that  was  gracious  to  man,  and  delivered 
him  from  going  down  to  the  pit ;  He  it  was  that 
found  a  ransom  (Job  33:24).  Without  sacri- 
ficing His  own  righteousness — which  would  have 
been,  of  course,  impossible — He  yet  found  a  way 
to  bestow  righteousness  upon  unrighteous  man. 
And  that  is  the  theme  of  the  second  main  division 


36  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

of   the   epistle   to   the   Romans:     righteousness, 
gospel-righteousness,  the  gift  of  God. 

I.    GoSPEI^-RlGHTEOUSNESS    IS   BY    FaITH    (3:21- 

31). 

1.  "But  now  the  righteousness  of  God  with- 
out the  law  is  manifested"  (21).  Gospel-right- 
eousness is  apart  from  the  law.  This  is  the  mean- 
ing of  the  expression,  "without  the  law,"  in  the 
King  James  Version.  The  Revision  reads  cor- 
rectly: "But  now  apart  from  the  law  a  right- 
eousness of  God  hath  been  manifested."  We 
have  already  seen  that  the  law,  instead  of  saving 
guilty  man,  only  increased  and  emphasized  his 
guilt.  The  righteousness  of  the  gospel,  then, 
is  entirely  apart  from  the  law.  This  is  only 
barely  mentioned  here,  for  it  is  to  come  up  for 
fuller  discussion  further  on  in  the  epistle. 

2.  "Being  witnessed  by  the  law  and  the 
prophets"  (21).  Though  gospel-righteousness  is 
"apart  from  the  law,"  yet  the  law  testifies  to  it. 
We  shall  come  to  this  again.  That  the  righteous- 
ness revealed  in  the  gospel  is  not  contrary  to  the 
Old  Testament  Scriptures,  is  the  theme  of  the 
fourth  chapter.  There  we  shall  see  that  salvation 
has  always  been  by  grace  through  faith — and 
that  is  the  righteousness  of  the  gospel ;  it  is  the 
revelation  of  it  that  is  new. 

3.  "Even  the  righteousness  of  God"  (22). 
This  gospel-righteousness  is  God's  own  righteous- 
ness. And  in  the  tenth  chapter  we  shall  see  that 
"the  righteousness  of  God"  is  just  Christ  Him- 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  Z7 

self,  Who  is  "the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness 
to  every  one  that  beHeveth."  "Under  law,"  says 
Dr.  Scofield  {''Correspondence  Course"),  "God 
required  righteousness  from  man;  under  grace 
He  gives  righteousness  to  man."  According  to 
Cunninghame,  the  righteousness  of  God  in  this 
chapter  is  "that  righteousness  which  God's  right- 
eousness requires  Him  to  require."  Hodge's  def- 
inition is  "that  righteousness  of  which  God  is  the 
Author,  which  is  of  avail  before  God,  which 
meets  and  secures  His  approval."  Brookes  says 
it  is  "that  righteousness  which  the  Father  re- 
quires, the  Son  became,  the  Holy  Spirit  convinces 
of,  and  faith  secures."  Moorehead  says  it  is  "the 
sum  total  of  all  that  God  commands,  demands, 
approves,  and  Himself  provides."  And  Paul  de- 
fines it  as  "Christ  Jesus,  Who  of  God  is  made 
unto  us righteousness"  (i  Cor.  i :  30). 

4.  "Through  faith  in  Jesus  Christ  unto  all 
them  that  believe"  (22,  R.  V.).  Gospel-right- 
eousness is  bestowed  in  response  to  faith.  This 
is  a  restatement  of  i :  16,  17,  and  it  comes  in  for 
full  treatment  in  the  tenth  chapter.  The  point  is 
that  the  righteousness  of  the  gospel  is  not  a  by- 
works  righteousness,  but  a  by-faith  righteous- 
ness. 

5.  "For  there  is  no  difference"  (22-26).  The 
way  was  prepared  for  this  statement  by  the  pre- 
ceding phrase,  "  unto  all  and  upon  all  them  that 
believe."  This  also  was  said  in  i :  16,  17.  The 
righteousness  of  the  gospel  is  for  all.  As  Stifler 
says,  "all  need  it,  and  no  class  of  men  has  an/- 


38  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

thing  else  to  present  before  God  for  salvation.'* 
In  Tit.  2:  II,  it  is  written  that  "the  grace  of  God 
that  bringeth  salvation  hath  appeared  to  all  men." 
A  universal  need  must  be  met  by  a  universal 
remedy.    "There  is  no  distinction"  (R.  V.)  : 

( 1 )  "For  all  have  sinned,  and  come  short  of 
the  glory  of  God"  (23).  There  is  no  distinction 
as  to  the  need.  This  has  been  very  clearly  shown 
in  the  first  main  division.  "The  glory  of  God" 
here  may  mean  Christ  Himself  as  God's  standard, 
"the  brightness  of  His  glory"  (Heb.  1:3),  and 
surely  all  have  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God 
in  this  sense.  But  more  likely  it  has  the  meaning 
of  the  identical  expression  in  Jno.  12:43,  where 
it  is  translated  "the  praise  of  God"  in  the  King 
James  Version  and  changed  to  "the  glory  of 
God"  by  the  Revisers.  God  cannot  praise  or  ap- 
prove anything  short  of  perfect  righteousness, 
and  no  man  can  therefore  merit  His  approbation. 
"All  have  sinned,  and  fall  short." 

(2)  "Being  justified  freely"  (24).  There  is 
no  distinction  as  to  the  remedy.  This  phase  of 
our  Lord's  redemptive  work  is  reserved  for  the 
fifth  chapter.  But  here  Paul  has  arrived  at  his 
first  statement  in  the  epistle  defining  the  gospel 
itself.  We  have  been  seeing  something  of  its 
power,  but  we  have  now  come  to  its  description. 
The  gospel  is  the  "good  news"  of  salvation.  Of 
this  salvation  we  here  learn  seven  things : 

(a)  That  it  is  free.  This  is  the  force  of  the 
word  "freely,"  i.  e.,  without  cost  to  the  saved  one. 
He  is  justified   (declared  or  pronounced  right- 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  39 

eous),  and,  so  far  as  he  is  concerned,  it  is  "with- 
out money  and  without  price." 

(b)  That  it  is  by  the  unmerited  favor  of  God 
(24),  "by  His  grace." 

(c)  That  it  is  by  means  of  Christ's  redemp- 
tive work  (24,  25),  "through  the  redemption  that 
is  in  Christ  Jesus,  whom  God  hath  set  forth  a 
propitiation"  (1911  Bible).  Redemption  is  a  buy- 
ing back — "a  buying  off,  by  means  of  a  price  paid" 

(Alford).    Propitiation  is  the  equivalent  of  "mer- 
cy seat." 

(d)  That  it  is  for  those  who  believe  (25)  ; 
it  is  "through  faith." 

(e)  That  it  is  based  upon  blood-shedding 
(25),  "through  faith  in  His  blood."  There  has 
been  much  theological  hair-splitting  as  to  whether 
this  reading  should  not  be  changed  to  "by  his 
blood."  "Philosophy  and  theology  have  busied 
themselves  here,  without  reaching  unanimity," 
says  Dr.  Stifler,  "on  a  question  which  Paul  does 
not  hint  at — the  relation  of  the  sacrifice  to  its  end. 
God  freely  justifies  men  by  means  of  the  ransom 
power  in  Christ  Jesus.  He  is  such  because  God 
has  set  Him  forth  in  His  blood  as  a  sufficient 
propitiation.  Whatever  reason  may  say  about 
such  a  sacrifice,  Paul  is  satisfied  with  it  because 
it  is  God's  own.  God  is  satisfied  with  the  offering, 
for  He  provided  it.  It  becomes  a  propitiation 
'through  faith,'  because  faith  says  of  it  just  what 
God  does — I  accept  what  God  has  provided  for 
my  sin.  That  ends  the  difference  between  God 
and  the  sinner,  and  they  are  at  one  in  Christ 


40  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Jesus.  This  is  justification  by  faith."  Dr.  Sco- 
field  says :  **It  was  upon  the  mercy  seat  that  the 
atoning  blood  was  sprinkled  on  the  great  day  of 
atonement  (Lev.  i6:  14).  The  idea  is  not  that 
God  was  made  loving  toward  the  sinner  by  the 
shedding  of  sacrificial  blood,  but  that  the  sacri- 
ficial blood  evinced  the  sinner's  acceptance  of  the 
righteous  sentence  of  God's  holy  law,  so  that  God 
could  still  be  just  and  yet  be  propitious  to  the  sin- 
ner. The  sinner's  faith  in  Christ  includes  'faith  in 
His  blood'  (Rom.  3 :  25)  ;  that  is,  faith  in  Christ 
as  'the  Lamb  of  God'  voluntarily  offering  Him- 
self on  the  sinner's  behalf  in  vindication  of  God's 
holy  law.  The  cross  enables  God  to  'be  just,  and 
the  justifier  of  him  that  believeth  in  Jesus.'  " 

(f )  That  it  is  retrospective  in  its  effect  (25), 
"to  show  His  righteousness  because  of  the  passing 
over  of  the  sins  done  aforetime,  in  the  forbear- 
ance of  God."  The  King  James  Version  is  very 
faulty  here :  our  quotation  is  from  the  Revision. 
The  idea  is  that  during  the  ages  before  the  cross, 
God  had  apparently  been  lax  with  reference  to 
sins.  As  Paul  says  in  Ac.  17,  He  "winked  at" 
them.  The  death  of  the  cross  was  needful  to  set 
God  right  in  the  eyes  of  men,  "to  show  His 
righteousness."  When  the  Lord  Jesus  died  on 
Calvary,  it  was  as  much  for  the  sins  of  Adam  as 
for  those  of  men  living  after  the  time  of  Calvary. 
God  had  for  centuries  labored  under  the  suspicion 
that  in  the  passing  over  of  sins  He  had  somehow 
sacrificed  His  righteousness.  It  might  be  sup- 
posed that  He  had  shown  mercy  at  the  expense  of 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  41 

justice.  This,  of  course,  is  impossible  with  a 
righteous  God,  and  the  Lord  Jesus  "must  be  lifted 
up,"  if  for  no  other  reason  than  to  show  that  His 
Father  was  righteous.  "For  four  thousand 
years,"  says  Godet,  "the  spectacle  presented  by 
mankind  to  the  whole  moral  universe  was,  so 
to  speak,  a  continual  scandal Divine  right- 
eousness seemed  to  sleep;  one  might  even  have 
asked  if  it  existed.  Men  sinned  here  below  and 
yet  they  lived.  They  sinned  on  and  yet  reached 
in  safety  a  hoary  old  age.  Where  were  th^ 
'wages  of  sin?'  It  was  this  relative  impunity 
which  rendered  a  solemn  manifestation  of  right- 
eousness necessary."  In  the  passage  before  us, 
Dean  Alford  translates,  "for  the  showing  forth 
of  His  righteousness,  because  of  the  passing 
over  of  the  former  sins,  in  the  forbearance  of 
God ;"  and  says :  "i.  e.,  because  God  had  over- 
looked the  sins  that  had  passed  in  His  forbear- 
ance ;  and  the  words  contain  the  reason  why 
God  would  manifest  His  judicial  righteousness; 
on  account  of  the  overlooking  of  the  sins  which 
had  passed,  in  the  forbearance  of  God;  i.  e.,  to 
vindicate  that  character  for  justice,  which  might 
seem,  owing  to  the  suspension  of  God's  righteous 
sentence  on  sin  in  former  ages  in  His  forbear- 
ance, to  be  placed  in  question :  to  show,  that 
though  He  did  not  then  fully  punish  for  sin,  and 
though  He  did  then  set  forth  inadequate  means 
of  (subjective)  justification, — yet  He  did  both, 
not  because  His  justice  was  slumbering,  nor  be- 
cause the  nature  of  His  righteousness  was  al- 


42  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

tered, — but  because  He  had  provided  a  way 
whereby  sin  might  be  forgiven,  and  He  might  be 
just.  Observe,  the  fact  mentioned  is  not  for- 
giveness, nor  remission,  as  the  Authorized  Ver- 
sion erroneously  renders  it,  but  passing  over,  or 
overlooking,  which  is  the  work  of  forbearance 
(see  Ac.  17 :  30),  whereas  forgiveness  is  the  work 
of  grace, — see  chap.  2:4:  nor  do  the  former  sins 
mean,  'the  sins  of  each  man  which  precede 
his  conversion,'  but  those  of  the  whole  world 
before  the  death  of  Christ,  See  the  very  similiar 
words,  Heb.  9:  15." 

(g)  That  it  is  also  prospective  in  its  effect 
(26).  That  is  to  say,  the  work  of  Christ  on  the 
cross  had  in  view  those  who  should  live  after- 
ward, as  well  as  those  who  had  lived  before  the 
cross  was  set  up.  There  is  a  second  showing- 
forth  here.  The  supplied  words,  "I  say,"  in 
both  the  King  James  Version  and  the  Revision, 
spoil  the  sense.  Paul  is  not  merely  repeating  in 
verse  26  what  he  has  already  said  in  verse  25 : 
he  is  saying  something  new.  Rotherham's  read- 
ing of  the  passage  (vs.  25,  26)  clears  up  the  mat- 
ter: 

"Whom  God  hath  set  forth  as  a  propitiatory  covering, 
through  faith  in  His  blood,  for  the  showing  forth  of  His 
righteousness,  by  reason  of  the  passing-by  of  the  pre- 
viously committed  sins,  in  the  forbearance  of  God, — 
with  a  view  to  a  showing  forth  of  His  righteousness  in 
the  present  season,  that  He  might  be  righteous  even 
when  declaring  righteous  him  that  hath  faith  in  Jesus." 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  43 

Here  is  the  great  triumph  of  the  gospel.  God 
Himself  is  justified,  and  He  succeeds  in  justifying 
sinful  men!  By  the  gospel  God's  righteousness 
is  shown  as  to  the  past;  His  righteousness  is 
shown  as  to  "the  present  time" ;  and  His  right- 
eousness is  shown  in  His  justification  of  those 
who,  on  their  own  merits,  are  only  unrighteous ! 
Surely,  this  is  a  wonderful  salvation,  and  He  is 
a  wonderful  Saviour ! 

6.  "Where  is  boasting  then?"  (27-30).  The 
gospel  excludes  human  boasting,  and  this  not  on 
the  principle  of  works,  but  on  the  principle  of 
faith.  The  proof  is  given  in  v.  28,  where  "there- 
fore" should  read  "for."  Both  the  King  James 
Version  and  the  Revision  fail  us  here.  The  force 
of  the  word  is  "Because."  In  this  verse  we  have 
the  reason  for  the  exclusion  of  all  human  glory- 
ing; namely,  "that  a  man  is  justified  by  faith 
apart  from  works  of  the  law"  (ipii  Bible).  And 
that  this  latter  statement  is  true  is  shown  by  im- 
plication in  the  queries  that  follow :  "Or  is  God 
the  God  of  Jews  only?  is  he  not  the  God  of 
Gentiles  also?"  The  Gentiles  had  not  the  law; 
it  had  been  given  to  the  Jews  alone.  If  therefore 
justification  was  by  means  of  the  law,  the  Gen- 
tiles were  shut  out.  But  this  was  impossible,  for 
God  is  the  God  "of  Gentiles  also:  if  so  be  that 
God  is  one,  and  He  shall  justify  the  circumcision 
by  faith,  and  the  uncircumcision  through  faith." 
Since  there  is  but  one  God,  there  can  be  but  one 
means  of  justification.  "A  righteous  judge  could 
not  render  contradictory  decisions  where  all  are 


44  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

alike  guilty,  and  certainly  He  could  not  decide  in 
such  a  way  that  His  judgment  to  save  some 
would  necessarily  exclude  others.  The  unity  of 
God  makes  salvation  by  faith  exclusive  of  every 
other  means"  (Stifler). 

7.  "Do  we  then  make  void  the  law  through 
faith?"  (31).  The  question  raised  here  is  a 
natural  one.  If  salvation  is  by  grace  and  apart 
from  the  law,  does  it  not  follow  that  the  law  is 
made  void  ?  *'God  forbid !"  says  the  apostle, 
"nay,  we  establish  the  law."  "The  sinner  es- 
tablishes the  law  in  its  right  use  and  honour," 
says  Dr.  Scofield,  "by  confessing  his  guilt,  and 
acknowledging  that  by  it  he  is  justly  condemned. 
Christ,  on  the  sinner's  behalf,  establishes  the 
law  by  enduring  its  penalty,  death"  ("Reference 
Bible").  Moffatt's  translation  of  verses  27-31  is 
interesting : 

"Then  where  is  the  exulting?  Shut  out.  By  what 
kind  of  law?  A  law  of  deeds?  No,  by  a  law  of  faith. 
For  we  reckon  that  a  man  is  justified  by  faith  apart  from 
deeds  of  law.  What!  is  God  only  the  God  of  Jews? 
Is  He  not  the  God  of  Gentiles  also?  Assuredly,  of  Gen- 
tiles also,  seeing  that  it  is  one  God  who  shall  justify  the 
circumcision  in  consequence  of  faith  and  the  uncircum- 
cision  through  the  same  faith.  Then  'through  faith' 
do  'we  annul  the  law  ?'    God  forbid !  we  uphold  the'  law." 

The  theme  of  the  fourth  chapter  is  suggested 
by  this  question  and  answer.  "The  law"  here 
means  not  only  the  Ten  Words  of  Sinai,  but  the 
Old  Testament  in  its  entirety.  Is  it  set  aside,  or 
made  of  none  effect  ?    No,  far  from  it !    In  the 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  45 

fourth  chapter  it  is  shown  that  the  righteousness 
of  God  revealed  in  the  gospel  is  indeed  "wit- 
nessed by  the  law  and  the  prophets." 

II.    GoSPDIv-RlGHTEOUSNESS     IS     NOT     CONTRARY 

TO  THK  Old  Testament  (ch.  4.) 

1.  "What  shall  we  say  then  that  Abraham 
our  father,  as  pertaining  to  the  flesh,  hath 
found?"  (i).  The  force  of  the  language  here 
used  is,  "What  then  shall  we  say  was  gained  by 
Abraham  our  father  after  the  flesh  ?"  What  did 
Abraham  gain,  and  how  did  he  gain  it?  If  his 
justification  was  by  works,  then  he  had  ground 
for  boasting. 

2.  "But  not  before  God"  (2).  This  word,  "be- 
fore God,"  is  the  key  to  the  seeming  conflict  be- 
tween Paul  and  James  (compare  Jas.  2:21-24). 
James  speaks  of  justification  in  the  sight  of  men, 
while  Paul  is  considering  justification  "before 
God."  That  no  flesh  is  justified  by  works  "in  the 
sight  of  God"  is  Paul's  contention,  and  James 
supplements  this  by  pointing  out  that  the  man  of 
faith  can  show  his  faith  only  by  his  works. 
Faith  is  visible  only  to  the  eye  of  God ;  it  mani- 
fests itself  by  its  works.  Faith,  which  only  God 
can  see,  justifies  in  His  sight;  works  justify  in 
the  sight  of  men. 

3.  "For  what  saith  the  Scripture?"  (3).  This 
appeal  "to  the  law  and  to  the  testimony"  is  to 
prove  that  Abraham's  salvation  was  by  faith: 
"Abraham  believed  God,  and  it  was  reckoned 
unto  him  for  righteousness"  (Gen.  15:6).    This 


46  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

is  righteousness  by  faith;  it  is  not  a  by-works 
righteousness;  it  is  a  by-faith  righteousness — 
that  is,  gospel-righteousness.  As  James  again 
points  out,  it  took  many  years  for  this  faith  of 
Abraham's  to  prove  itself  to  outward  observation, 
but  God  knew  all  about  it  when  Abraham  be- 
lieved Him.  "The  whole  question,"  says  Dean 
Alford,  "so  much  mooted  between  Protestants  on 
the  one  hand,  and  Romanists,  Arminianists  and 
Socinians  on  the  other,  as  to  whether  this  right- 
eousness was  reckoned  (i)  by  means  of  faith, 
being  God's  righteousness  imputed  to  the  sin- 
ner; or  (2)  on  account  of  faith,  so  that  God 
made  Abraham  righteous  on  account  of  the 
merit  of  his  faith,  lies  in  fact  in  a  small  com- 
pass, if  what  has  gone  before  be  properly  taken 
into  account.  The  apostle  has  proved  Jews  and 
Gentiles  to  be  all  under  sin :  utterly  unable  by 
works  of  their  own  to  attain  to  righteousness. 
Now  faith,  in  the  second  sense  mentioned  above, 
is  strictly  and  entirely  a  work,  and  as  such  would 
be  the  efficient  cause  of  man's  justification, — 
which,  by  what  has  preceded,  it  cannot  be.  It 
will  therefore  follow,  that  it  was  not  the  act  of 
believing  which  was  reckoned  to  him  as  a 
righteous  act,  or  on  account  of  which  perfect 
righteousness  was  laid  to  his  charge,  but  that  the 
fact  of  his  trusting  God  to  perform  His  prom- 
ise introduced  him  into  the  blessing  promised. 
God  declared  His  purpose  (Gen.  12:  3)  of  bless- 
ing all  the  families  of  the  earth  in  Abraham,  and 
again  (Gen.  15:5)  that  his  seed  should  be  as  the 


THE  RIGHTBOUSNBSS  OF  GOD.  47 

stars  of  heaven,  when  as  yet  he  had  no  son.  Abra- 
ham believed  this  promise,  and  became  par- 
taker of  this  blessing.  But  this  blessing  was, 
justification  by  faith  in  Christ.  Now  Abraham 
could  not,  in  the  strict  sense  of  the  words,  be 
justified  by  faith  in  Christ, — nor  is  it  necessary 
to  suppose  that  he  directed  his  faith  forward  to 
the  promised  Redeemer  in  Person ;  but  in  so  far 
as  God's  gracious  purpose  was  revealed  to  him, 
he  grasped  it  by  faith,  and  that  righteousness 
which  was  implied,  so  far,  in  it,  was  imputed  to 
him.  Some  have  said  (for  example,  Tholuck) 
that  the  parallel  is  incomplete — Abraham's  faith 
having  been  reckoned  to  him  for  righteousness, 
whereas,  in  our  case,  the  righteousness  of  Christ 
is  reckoned  to  us  as  our  righteousness,  by  faith. 
But  the  incompleteness  lies  in  the  nature  of  the 
respective  cases.  In  his  case,  the  righteousness 
itself  was  not  yet  manifested.  He  believed  im- 
plicitly, taking  the  promise,  with  all  it  involved 
and  implied,  as  true.  This,  then,  was  his  way 
of  entering  into  the  promise,  and  by  means  of  his 
faith  was  bestowed  upon  him  that  full  justifi- 
cation which  that  faith  never  apprehended.  Thus 
his  faith  itself,  the  mere  fact  of  implicit  trust  in 
God,  was  counted  to  him  for  righteousness.  But 
though  the  same  righteousness  is  imputed  to  us 
who  believe,  and  by  means  of  faith  also,  it  is  no 
longer  the  mere  fact  of  believing  implicitly  in 
God's  truth,  but  the  reception  of  Christ  Jesus 
the  Lord  by  faith,  which  justifies  us  (see  vs. 
23-25).    As  it  was  then  the  realization  of  God's 


48  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

words  by  faith,  so  now ;  but  we  have  the  Person 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  for  the  object  of  faith,  ex- 
plicitly revealed;  he  had  not.  In  both  cases 
justification  is  gratuitous  and  is  by  faith;  and 
so  far,  which  is  as  far  as  the  argument  here  re- 
quires, the  parallel  is  strict  and  complete"  ("The 
New  Testament  for  English  Readers"). 

4.  "Now  to  him  that  v^^orketh  is  the  reward 
not  reckoned  of  grace,  but  of  debt"  (4).  "Now 
a  worker  has  his  wage  counted  to  him  as  a  due, 
not  as  a  favour"  (Moffatt's  translation).  "It  is 
no  favour  to  a  man  to  pay  him  what  he  is  earning. 
It  is  a  'debt'  due  him"  (Stifler).  Dr.  Shedd 
quotes  Coriolanus  here : 

"Better  it  is  to  die,  better  to  starve, 
Than  crave  the  hire  which  first  we  do  deserve." 

5.  "But  to  him  that  worketh  not,  but  believ- 
eth, his  faith  is  reckoned  for  righteous- 
ness" (5).  Here  is  a  most  explicit  statement  of 
justification  by  grace  through  faith.  Justification 
is  offered  not  to  the  worker  but  to  the  believer. 
Works  indeed  have  their  place  in  the  believer's 
life — he  is  "created  in  Christ  Jesus  unto  good 
works"  (Eph.  2:  10),  but  his  salvation  is  not  a 
reward  for  works :  it  is  the  gift  of  God  through 
faith. 

6.  "Even  as  David  also"  (6-8).  This  quota- 
tion from  the  32d  Psalm  is  offered  in  further 
proof  of  the  proposition  of  the  chapter,  namely, 
that  gospel-righteousness  is  in  keeping  with  the 
Old  Testament.     David  was  an  Old  Testament 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  49 

saint,  and  his  justification  was  by  faith.  He  "de- 
scribeth  the  blessedness  of  the  man,  unto  whom 
God  reckoneth  righteousness  apart  from  works, 
saying,  Blessed  are  they  whose  iniquities  are 
forgiven,  and  whose  sins  are  covered.  Blessed 
is  the  man  to  whom  the  Lord  will  not  reckon  sin" 
(191 1  Bible).  Blessed,  indeed!  Wonderful  sal- 
vation ! 

7.  "Cometh  this  blessedness  then  upon  the 
circumcision  only?"  (9-12).  Justification  in  the 
Old  Testament,  as  in  the  New,  is  independent  of 
ordinances.  It  was  not  a  reward  of  circum- 
cision, for  Abraham  was  justified  twenty-five 
years  before  he  was  circumcised.  Thus  he  is 
"the  father  of  all  them  that  believe,"  whether 
from  among  the  Jews  or  from  among  the  Gen- 
tiles. "So  then  they  which  be  of  faith  are 
blessed  with  faithful  Abraham"  (Gal.  3:9). 

8.  "For  the  promise was  not 

through  the  law"  (13-22).  This  justification, 
in  the  Old  Testament,  as  in  the  New,  is  in- 
dependent of  the  law  of  Sinai.  Abraham  never 
had  the  law,  and  without  it  he  was  justified.  He 
was  saved  by  promise,  and  the  law  which  came 
430  years  afterward  did  not  make  void  the  older 
Covenant  of  Promise.  The  law  was  added  to 
the  promise  only  until  the  Seed  to  Whom  the 
promise  was  made  should  come.  He  having 
come,  the  law — which  was  a  schoolmaster  to 
bring  unto  Him — is  done  away  (2  Cor.  3;   Gal. 

3:19-29).     "The   promise was   not 

through  the  law,  but  through  the  righteousness 


so  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

of  faith"  (Rom.  4:  13).  There  can  be  no  ming- 
ling of  the  two  covenants,  for  their  fundamental 
principles  are  in  sharpest  contrast.  "The  law 
worketh  wrath,"  and  not  salvation  (v.  15). 
"Therefore  it  is  of  faith,  that  it  might  be  by 
grace"  (16).  On  no  other  basis  could  grace  have 
manifested  itself.  Let  the  principle  of  works 
enter  in,  and  grace  is  excluded.  Abraham  was 
given  a  promise  which  was  opposed  to  nature. 
But  because  the  Promiser  was  God,  he  considered 
neither  his  own  dead  body,  nor  the  deadness  of 
Sarah's  womb ;  he  staggered  not  at  the  promise 
through  unbelief ;  he  believed  God ;  "and  there- 
fore"— therefore ;  because  he  believed  God — "it 
was  reckoned  to  him  for  righteousness"  (22, 
ipii  Bible). 
9.  "Now   it  was   not  written  for  his   sake 

alone, but  for  us  also"  (23-25).    Not  "for 

his  sake  alone,"  but  "for  us  also."  The  Old 
Testament  and  the  New  Testament  are  in  perfect 
concord.  To  the  Old  Testament  saint,  faith  was 
reckoned  for  righteousness ;  and  not  only  to  him, 
but  to  "us  also,  to  whom  it  shall  be  reckoned,  if 
we  believe  on  Him  that  raised  up  Jesus  our  Lord 
from  the  dead;  Who  was  delivered  up  for  our 
offences,  and  was  raised  again  for  our  justifi- 
cation" (24,  25).  "Why  was  this  25th  verse 
added?"  asks  Dr.  Stifler.  "Why  did  the  story 
not  close  with  the  24th  ?  To  show  that  the  faith 
that  saves  is  not  faith  in  the  act  of  the  resur- 
rection, but  in  its  import.     He  who  is  justified 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  51 

must  believe  not  only  that  Jesus  died  and  rose 
again,  but  why.  He  died  'for  our  offences.'  This 
word  'offences'  brings  to  view  again  the  whole 
somber  picture  of  the  first  main  division  of  the 
epistle,  the  division  about  sin.  Sin  was  such  that 
nothing  but  the  blood  of  Jesus  our  Lord  could 
atone  for  it.  But  His  death  does  atone,  and  there- 
fore no  works  of  law  find  any  place  in  justifi- 
cation. And  so  it  comes  to  pass  that  he  who  be- 
lieves in  the  resurrection  believes  first  of  all  that 
his  own  personal  sins  sent  Jesus  to  the  cross  and 
the  tomb,  that  He  was  the  all-sufficient  sacrifice 
for  sin.  It  is  only  painful  conviction  of  sin  that 
can  believe  in  this  way.  But  if  faith  stopped  at 
the  tomb  it  would  be  only  an  agony.  It  also  sees 
that,  while  Jesus  died  for  sins,  that  death  was  ac- 
cepted as  the  ransom  price  (3 :  24),  and  so  Jesus 
was  raised  again.  He  who  became  surety  for 
the  sinner's  debt  could  not  have  been  released 
from  the  prison-house  of  the  tomb  unless  the 
debt  was  paid.  His  appearance  from  the  tomb 
is  an  everlasting  proof  of  the  sufficiency  of  His 
atonement  for  our  sins;  and  he  who  really  be- 
lieves in  the  resurrection  believes  that  the  guilt 
of  his  sins  is  cancelled.  Faith  is  no  longer  an 
agony,  but  a  joy,  and  the  believer's  heart  is  set, 
not  merely  on  the  historic  (2  Cor.  5 :  16),  but  on 
the  raised  Christ.  That  He  was  delivered  for  our 
offences  is  pain:  that  He  was  raised  again  for 
our  justification  is  pure  spiritual  delight." 


52  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

III.  Gospf:i.-Righteousne:ss  Provides  for  the 
Believer's  Eternal  Security  (ch.  5). 

I.  "Therefore  being  justified  by  faith"  (i- 
11).  The  sevenfold  resuh  of  justification  is 
shown  in  this  passage.  By  reason  of  the  gospel- 
righteousness  bestowed  in  response  to  faith,  the 
believer  has 

(i)  "Peace  with  God"  (i).  Christ  Himself 
"is  our  peace"  (Eph.  2 :  14).  The  American  Re- 
visers have  changed  the  "we  have"  to  "let  us 
have."  In  favor  of  the  former  are  the  American 
portion  of  the  Revision  Committee,  also  H.  A. 
W.  Meyer,  Godet  and  others.  Meyer  says  the  im- 
perative is  "utterly  unsuitable"  to  the  sense.  On 
this  Dr.  Stifler  says,  "The  question  turns  on  the 
length  of  a  single  vowel,  and  the  manuscripts  are 
not  trustworthy  on  this  point;  they  frequently 
confound  the  long  and  short  o.  The  logic  must 
decide.  'Peace'  does  not  mean  primarily  tran- 
quility of  mind,  but  that  state  of  things  ensuing 
from  a  cessation  of  hostilities,  freedom  from 
strife  (3:17;  Ac.  12:20).  This  peaceful  state 
came  'through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,'  Who 
averted  the  wrath  of  God.  It  is  possible  by  not 
noting  this  meaning  of  the  word  'peace*  that  the 
mode  of  the  verb  was  changed.  For  justification 
gives  peace  in  this  sense  even  when  there  may  be 
no  settled  tranquility  of  the  heart"  (compare 
Phil.  4:7-9)- 

(2)  "Access  by  faith  into  this  grace  wherein 
we  stand"  (2).    Access  means  "a  way  in."  Man, 


THE  RIGHTBOUSNBSS  OF  GOD.  53 

apart  from  Christ,  is  shut  out  from  God's  pres- 
ence and  has  no  way  of  approach  unto  Him.  But 
gospel-righteousness  gives  him  an  open  door, 
even  Him  who  said,  "I  am  the  Door:  by  Me 
if  any  man  enter  in,  he  shall  be  saved,  and  shall 
go  in  and  out,  and  find  pasture"  (Jno.  10:9). 
By  Him  we  have  access  by  faith.  A  standing  in 
grace  is  now  conferred  upon  the  believer.  The 
gospel  has  been  preached  unto  him,  which  also 
he  has  received,  and  wherein  he  stands  (i  Cor. 
15:  i).  His  standing  before  God  is  the  standing 
of  Christ  Himself.  He  is  "accepted  in  the  Be- 
loved" (Eph.  1:6).  It  is  all  of  grace,  and  hav- 
ing become  a  son,  the  believer  is  exhorted  to  be 
strong  in  the  grace  that  is  in  Christ  Jesus  (2 
Tim.  2:1).  All  this  is  his  through  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  Who,  knowing  no  sin,  was  made 
sin  for  us,  that  we  might  be  made  the  righteous- 
ness of  God  in  Him  (2  Cor.  5:21).  This  is 
gospel-righteousness. 

(3)  "And  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of 
God"  (2).  "What  was  said  above,"  says  Dr. 
Stifler,  "on  the  reading  *let  us  have'  is  equally 
true  here  on  the  wrong  reading  'let  us  rejoice.' 
The  King  James  Version  is  correct."  Perhaps 
the  exhortation  is  necessary,  in  order  to  call  our 
attention  to  what  is  really  ours  as  the  result  of 
justification.  The  unregenerate  sinner  has  no 
joy  in  the  prospective  glory  of  God;  but  to  the 
believer  it  is  given  to  "rejoice  in  hope"  of  that 
glory.  Christ  "having  made  peace"  for  him 
"through  the  blood  of  His  cross"   (Col.  1:20), 


54  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

thus  opened  for  him  "a  way  in"  to  God's  pres- 
ence and  fellowship,  and  establishing  his  stand- 
ing before  God,  the  believer  looks  forward  with 
rejoicing  to  the  time  when  the  whole  earth  shall 
be  full  of  God's  glory. 

(4)  "And  not  only  so,  but  we  glory  in  tribu- 
lations also"  (3).  For  "we  glory"  read  "we  re- 
joice," as  in  verse  2.  Not  only  do  we  rejoice  in 
the  coming  glory,  but  also  the  sufferings  attend- 
ing us  on  the  way.  The  reason  for  this  is  given. 
The  Christian  may  exult  even  in  tribulation, 
knowing  that  tribulation  worketh  patience  (i.  e., 
endurance)  ;  and  patience  (or  endurance)  work- 
eth experience;  and  experience,  hope  (3,  4). 
And  as  for  this  hope,  it  is  a  hope  that  maketh 
not  ashamed,  a  hope  that  can  never  bring  disap- 
pointment, a  hope  that  is  sure  of  fruition.  The 
reason  for  this  is  shown  in  the  next  clause  of  the 
passage. 

(5)  "Because  the  love  of  God  is  shed  abroad 
in  our  hearts"  (5).  The  love  of  God  here 
spoken  of  is  not  our  love  for  God,  nor  God's  love 
for  us,  but  just  God's  own  love  as  it  pours  forth 
from  His  great  loving  heart.  Let  it  not  be  for- 
gotten that  this  indwelling  love  is  a  proof  that 
the  believer's  hope  will  never  shame  him.  He 
may  boldly  confess  his  hope  because  he  has  God's 
love  in  his  heart.  "We  know  that  we  have 
passed  from  death  unto  life,  because  we  love  the 
brethren.     He  that  loveth  not  his  brother  abid- 

eth  in  death Hereby  perceive  we  the  love 

of  God,  because  He  laid  down  His  life  for  us: 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  55 

and  we  ought  to  lay  down  our  lives  for  the  breth- 
ren  Hereby  we  know  that  we  are  of  the 

truth,  and  shall  assure  our  hearts  before  Him" 
(i  Jno.  3:14-19). 

(6)  "The   Holy  Spirit is  given  unto 

us"  (5).  He  not  only  puts  God's  love  into  our 
hearts,  but  He  Himself  dwells  in  us  (Rom.  8: 
9).  Love  Is  the  Spirit's  fruit  (Gal.  5  :  22),  borne 
in  us  by  His  own  presence.  We  know  that  He 
liveth  in  us,  because  of  the  presence  within  us  of 
God's  love.  "If  we  love  one  another,"  that  fact 
is  the  proof  that  "God  dwelleth  in  us,  and  (thus) 
His  love  is  perfected  in  us"  (i  Jno.  4:  12).  "It 
is  God  which  worketh  in  you  both  to  will  and  to 
do  of  His  good  pleasure"  (Phil.  2:  13).  Nothing 
is  more  clearly  taught  In  the  New  Testament 
than  that  the  Holy  Spirit  is  given  to  each  be- 
liever as  an  indwelling  presence  (i  Cor.  6:19; 
Rom.  8:9). 

(7)  "We  also  joy  in  God"  (11).  Thi^  is  the 
capstone  of  the  magnificent  temple  of  the  believ- 
er's inheritance  resulting  from  gospel-righteous- 
ness. He  is  brought  to  the  place  of  joy  in  God. 
Not  merely  In  the  blessings  of  God,  but  in  God 
Himself.  His  soul  crieth  out  after  God,  the  liv- 
ing God,  and  only  God  can  satisfy  him.  This  jo}^ 
in  God  is  "through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
through  Whom  we  have  now  received  the  recon- 
ciliation." "Atonement"  is  wrong  here.  The 
word  used  Is  the  same  as  the  one  occurring  twice 
In  verse  10.  The  reconciliation  we  have  received 
Is   the   changed   relation  between   God   and  vis. 


56  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

The  argument  for  the  beHever's  security  in 
Christ  reaches  its  cHmax  here,  ending  where  it 
began.  "We  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory  of 
God;"  that  is  to  say,  "We  joy  in  God,"  and  this 
on  account  of  the  reconciUation  which  has  been 
accompHshed  by  the  gospel. 

The  steps  leading  up  to  this  climax  are  in 
verses  6  to  lo,  which  contain  a  threefold  anti- 
thesis arguing  the  proposition  that  the  saved  are 
eternally  safe.  It  sets  forth  that  this  is  true  be- 
cause (i)  God,  on  account  of  His  great  love  for 
His  enemies,  gave  His  Son  to  die  for  them; 
"much  more  then,"  shall  these  enemies,  now 
justified,  be  kept  safe,  through  Christ,  from  the 
wrath  to  come  (compare  vs.  8,  g  with  i  Thes. 
1 : 9,  lo)  ;  it  is  true  furthermore  (2)  because, 
having  reconciled  us  to  Himself  when  we  were 
His  enemies,  He  surely  will  preserve  us  who  have 
become  His  friends  (compare  verse  10  with  Col. 
1 :  21,  22)  ;  and  it  is  true  (3)  because  Christ,  Who 
died  to  save  us,  now  lives  to  keep  us  saved 
(compare  verse  10  with  Heb.  7 :  25  ;  i  Pet.  1:5). 

We  cannot  doubt  God's  love  toward  us,  for 
Christ  died  for  us  while  we  were  "without 
strength"  and  "ungodly"  (v.  6).  Someone 
might  be  found  to  die  for  a  good  man,  but  Christ 
died  for  sinners,  and  this  is  another  proof  of  God*s 
love  for  us  (vs.  7,  8).  It  follows,  then,  that  being 
justified  by  His  blood,  we  shall  be  kept  safe  in 
Christ  from  the  wrath  to  come  (v.  9).  Since  by 
Christ's  death  we  who  were  enemies  were  recon- 
ciled to  God,  much  more  shall  we,  by  Christ's 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  57 

life  at  God's  right  hand,  be  kept  safe.    Because 
He  lives  we  shall  live  also  (v.  10). 

In  a  word  the  believer  has  been  brought  into  a 
new  state  of  reconciliation,  and  it  is  made  evi- 
dent that  God  will  keep  him  in  this  state.  There- 
fore he  rejoices  in  God. 

"To  God  I'm  reconciled; 
His  pardoning  voice  I  hear; 
He  owns  me  for  His  child ; 
I  can  no  longer  fear. 
With  confidence  I  now  draw  nigh, 
And  'Father,  Abba,  Father,'  cry." 

2.  "Through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  through 
Whom  we  have  nov^^  received  the  reconcili- 
ation" (11,  i^.  v.).  "It  has  not  been  sufficiently 
noted  by  expositors,"  said  Dr.  Stifler,  "that  the 
word  'received'  (v.  11)  is  not  active,  but  passive, 
equivalent  to  'made  recipients  of.'  The  argu- 
ment for  the  'assurance  of  salvation  secured  for 
the  present  and  the  future'  (H.  A.  W.  Meyer)  is 
conducted  wholly  from  the  divine  side.  .If  it  is 
objected  that,  after  all,  faith  is  a  necessary  con- 
dition of  salvation,  and  if  it  fails,  all  fails,  why 
this  very  point  is  secured  by  the  whole  argument. 
If  when  we  were  hateful  to  God  He  changed 
toward  us,  will  He — now  that  we  have  been  made 
recipients  in  His  grace  of  that  saving  change — 
will  He  now  not  insure  the  condition  of  its  per- 
petuity? Will  God  care  for  everything  concern- 
ing the  believer,  support  him  In  trials,  shield  him 
in  temptation,  shed  His  love  abroad  in  his  heart, 


58  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

but  leave  him  to  himself  in  the  vital  point,  his 
faith  ?  The  reconciled  man's  faith  is  the  first  and 
the  chief  object  of  the  divine  care.  The  single 
aim  of  the  argument  is  the  performance  of  jus- 
tification by  faith." 

3.  "Wherefore"  (12-21).  The  all-inclusive 
aspect  of  Christ's  redemptive  v^ork  on  the  cross 
is  set  forth  in  this  passage.  Adam  and  Christ  are 
brought  into  contrast  to  show  the  effect  of 
Adam's  sin  on  the  one  hand  and  Christ's  atoning 
death  on  the  other. 

Verses  13  to  17  being  parenthetical,  verses 
12  and  18  should  be  read  together.  The  ''Where- 
fore" introducing  verse  12  is  literally  "On  this 
account."  This  links  the  new  paragraph  begin- 
ning here  with  the  one  preceding  it,  and  shows 
that  the  topic  is  unchanged.  Verses  12  and  18 
may  be  read, 

"Therefore,  as  through  one  man  sin  entered  into  the 
world,  and  death  through  sin ;  and  so  death  passed  unto 
all  men,  for  that  all  sinned ;  so  then,  as  through  one 
trespass  it  (the  trespass)  came  to  all  men  unto  condem- 
nation; so  also  through  one  righteous  act  it  (the 
righteous  act)  came  to  all  men  unto  justification  of  life" 
(Improved  Version). 

The  argument  here — and  the  argument  is  elab- 
orated in  the  intervening  parenthetical  passage, 
as  we  shall  see — is  that  when  Adam  sinned  all 
mankind  sinned  in  him.  This  is  proved  from  the 
fact  that  physical  death  was  the  common  lot  of 
all  men  from  Adam  to  Moses.  Irresponsible 
persons,  including  infants  and  the  insane,  died  as 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OP  GOD.  59 

well  as  others ;  and  as  these  could  not  have  died 
as  the  result  of  any  sins  of  their  own,  and  as 
death  is  the  result  of  sin,  it  is  argued  that  their 
death  was  the  outgrowth  of  their  sin  when  they 
were  yet  in  Adam's  loins.  A  similar  argument  is 
found  in  Heb.  7 : 9,  10,  where  it  is  declared  that 
Levi  paid  tithes  to  Melchizedek  in  Abraham,  "for 
he  was  yet  in  the  loins  of  his  father,  when  Mel- 
chizedek met  him." 

Before  he  had  begotten  a  single  child,  Adam 
fell  into  sin,  and,  as  a  result,  his  nature  became 
sinful  and  corrupt  and  death-dealing.  And  his 
offspring,  which  of  course  includes  the  whole 
human  family,  has  inherited  from  him  the  poison 
of  his  fallen  nature  and  the  seeds  of  death.  It 
is  on  this  account  that  man  dies.  It  is  not  a 
man's  own  sinful  acts  in  his  own  person  that 
cause  his  death.  He  dies  because  he  has  in- 
herited a  dying  nature,  and  he  has  inherited  a 
dying  nature  because  he  sinned  in  his  father 
Adam. 

This  is  unfolded  in  the  parenthetical  verses,  13 
to  17.  Sin  was  in  the  world  before  the  law  was 
issued  on  Sinai,  but,  in  the  absence  of  law,  sin  is 
not  charged  against  men.  Nevertheless  men  died 
— "death  reigned  from  Adam  to  Moses."  Now, 
why  did  they  die,  if  death  is  the  penalty  for  our 
sinful  acts?  There  was  no  law  to  transgress, 
and  yet  death  reigned  "even  over  them  that  had 
not  sinned  after  the  similitude  (or  likeness)  of 
Adam's  transgression."  Adam  transgressed  a 
law  when  he  sinned :    God  had  said  that  of  the 


6o  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

tree  of  the  knowledge  of  good  and  evil  he  must 
not  eat,  and  that  if  he  ate  of  it,  he  should  die. 
When  he  ate,  he  transgressed  this  law  and  in- 
curred its  penalty,  therefore  he  died ;  on  the  day 
that  he  ate  of  it  he  died  spiritually,  being  cut  off 
for  the  time  being  from  the  life  of  God;  and  in 
due  time  he  died  physically,  and  this  because  he 
had  transgressed  the  law  of  God.  His  descendants 
lived  and  multiplied  through  the  centuries  from 
Adam  to  Moses;  and,  although  they  were  not 
under  law,  they  died.  This  shows  that  they 
died  because  they  all  had  sinned  against  law  in 
the  act  of  Adam  while  they  were  yet  in  his  loins, 
"who  is  a  figure  of  Him  that  was  to  come." 

This  little  word — "Him  that  was  to  come" — 
points  to  the  antidote  provided  of  God  for  the 
awful  and  deadly  poison  of  sin,  and  the  fact  that 
the  antidote  is  ready  and  abundant  and  efficacious 
delivers  God  from  the  suspicion  of  arbitrary  and 
unjust  dealing  with  men.  In  the  first  place,  their- 
sinful  condition  was  not  due  to  any  divine  fiat; 
it  was  rather  the  result  of  wilful  disobedience  on 
man's  part.  And  in  the  second  place,  God  has 
done  what  he  needed  not  to  do  in  providing  the 
remedy.  He  has  done  it,  not  to  discharge  an 
obligation,  but  for  "the  great  love  wherewith  he 
loved  us." 

The  language  in  verses  15  to  17  is  very  much 
involved,  and  the  translators  are  in  confusion 
about  it.  As  given  in  the  King  James  Version, 
"But  not  as  the  offence,  so  also  is  the  free  gift 
and  not  as  it  was  by  one  that  sinned,  so  is 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  6i 

the  gift,"  etc.,  it  is  awkward  and  hard  to  be 
understood.  The  revisers  only  change  the  word 
''offence"  to  ''trespass"  and  do  not  help  much. 
Mr.  Darby  suggests  a  way  out  of  the  difficulty 
by  reading,  "But  shall  not  the  act  of  favour  be 

as  the  offence? and  shall  not  as  by  one  that 

sinned  be  the  gift?"  But  even  he  gives  the  com- 
mon reading  in  a  foot-note,  showing  that  he  is 
uncertain  about  the  matter. 

Conybeare  and  Howson  render  it: 

"But  far  greater  is  the  gift  than  was  the  transgression ; 
for  if  by  the  sin  of  one  man  (Adam),  death  passed  upon 
the  many,  much  more  in  the  grace  of  the  one  man  Jesus 
Christ  has  the  freeness  of  God's  bounty  overflowed  unto 
the  many.  Moreover  the  boon  (of  God)  exceeds  the 
fruit  of  Adam's  sin ;  for  the  doom  came,  out  of  one  of- 
fence, a  sentence  of  condemnation ;  but  the  gift  comes, 
out  of  many  offences,  a  sentence  of  acquittal.  For  if 
the  reign  of  death  was  established  by  the  one  man 
(Adam),  through  the  sin  of  him  alone;  far  more  shall 
the  reign  of  life  be  established,  in  those  who  receive 
the  overflowing  fulness  of  the  free  gift  of  righteousness, 
by  the  one  man  Jesus  Christ." 

Moffatt's  ''Historical  New  Testament"  reads : 

"But  very  different  is  the  free  gift  from  the  trespass. 
For  since  the  many  died  by  the  one  man's  trespass,  much 
more  did  the  grace  of  God  and  that  free  gift  which  is 
by  the  grace  of  the  man  Jesus  Christ  abound  to  the 
many.  And  the  free  gift  is  not  occasioned  as  by  one 
that  sinned.  For  while  the  judgment  passed  from  one 
into  condemnation,  the  free  gift  passed  from  many  tres- 
passes into  justification." 


62  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Dr.  Weymouth  translates: 

"But  God's  free  gift  immeasurably  outweighs  the 
transgression  (or,  false  step).  For  if  through  the  trans- 
gression of  the  one  individual  the  mass  of  mankind  have 
died,  infinitely  greater  is  the  generosity  with  which 
God's  grace,  and  the  gift  given  in  His  grace  which 
found  expression  in  the  one  man  Jesus  Christ,  have  been 
bestowed  on  the  mass  of  mankind.  And  it  is  not  with 
the  gift  as  it  was  with  the  results  of  one  individual's  sin ; 
for  the  judgment  which  one  individual  provoked  re- 
sulted in  condemnation,  whereas  the  free  gift  after  a 
multitude  of  transgressions  results  in  acquittal.  For  if, 
through  the  transgression  of  the  one  individual,  death 
made  use  of  the  one  individual  to  seize  the  sovereignty, 
all  the  more  shall  those  who  receive  God's  overflowing 
grace  and  gift  of  righteousness  reign  as  kings  in  life 
through  the  one    individual,  Jesus  Christ." 

The  parenthesis  ends  with  verse  17.  The 
American  Revision  should  be  consulted  in  the 
study  of  the  final  verses  of  the  chapter,  for  the 
Revisers  have  preserved  to  us  the  definite  article 
used  in  the  Greek  throughout  the  passage.  Thus 
we  read: 

"So  then  as  through  one  .trespass  the  judgment 
came  unto  all  men  to  condemnation;  even  so  through 
one  act  of  righteousness  the  free  gift  came  unto  all 
men  to  justification  of  life.  For  as  through  the  one 
man's  disobedience  the  many  were  made  sinners,  even 
so  through  the  obedience  of  the  one  shall  the  many  be 
made  righteous.  And  the  law  came  in  besides,  that  the 
trespass  might  abound ;  but  where  sin  abounded,  grace 
did  abound  more  exceedingly:  that,  as  sin  reigned  in 
death,  even  so  might  grace  reign  through  righteousness 
unto  eternal  life  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord." 


THB  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OP  GOD.  63 

This  passage  clearly  teaches  that  over  against 
the  fact  that  men  are  "by  nature  children  of 
wrath"  God  has  set  the  other  fact  that  by  His 
grace  the  Lord  Jesus  on  the  cross  "tasted  death 
for  every  man."  If  in  Adam's  sin,  "the  many 
were  constituted  sinners,"  it  is  also  true  that  in 
Christ's  death,  "the  many  were  constituted 
righteous." 

The  reason  for  the  law  is  given  in  verse  20. 
It  "entered,  that  the  offence  might  abound."  As 
Gal.  3:  19  puts  it,  "It  was  added  (to  the  Abra- 
hamic  covenant)  because  (literally,  for  the  sake) 
of  transgressions" ;  and  it  was  given  only  tem- 
porarily, "till  the  Seed  (i.  e.,  Christ)  should  come, 
to  Whom  the  promise  was  made."  In  other 
words,  the  law  was  given  to  magnify  the  sinful- 
ness of  sin,  "that  sin  by  the  commandment  might 
become  exceeding  sinful"  (Rom.  7:13).  But 
even  for  this  condition,  God's  remedy  was  at 
hand. 

"Where  sin  increased,  grace  has  overflowed ;  in  order 
that  as  sin  has  exercised  kingly  sway  in  inflicting  death, 
so  grace,  too,  may  exercise  kingly  sway  in  bestowing  a 
righteousness  which  results  in  the  Life  of  the  Ages 
through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord"  (vs.  20,  21,  Weymouth). 

We  conclude  our  study  by  quoting  a  para- 
phrase of  this  passage  from  the  pen  of  Professor 
George  Barker  Stevens : 

"In  view  of  the  truths  which  have  been  established, 
we  may  compare  Christ,  His  work,  and  its  result,  sal- 
vation, with  Adam,  his  fatal  transgression,  and  its  con- 


64  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

sequence,  physical  death,  which  became  the  portion  of 
all  because  his  sin  involved  as  its  result  the  sinning  of 
all  his  descendants.  I  affirm  this  relation  between  sin 
and  death  on  the  ground  that  even  before  the  law 
came  in  to  condemn  sin  and  to  stamp  it  as  transgression, 
all  were  falling  a  prey  to  death;  even  those  who  lived 
duing  this  period  and  had,  unlike  Adam,  no  explicit, 
positive  command  which  they  could  break,  continued  to 
die.  (But,  before  carrying  out  the  comparison  between 
Adam  and  his  work,  and  Christ  and  His  work,  note 
certain  differences.  The  grace  of  God  in  Christ  is  more 
than  a  match  for  the  sin  which  began  with  Adam  and 
spread  itself  over  all  mankind.  Man's  condemnation 
issued  from  one  trespass,  but  God's  restoring  grace  has 
more  power  than  many  trespasses  even,  since  it  saves 
man  from  the  power  of  many.  We  may  be  sure  of  this 
because  it  is  more  easily  conceivable  and  more  certain 
that  those  who  receive  God's  gift  in  Christ  will  triumph 
over  sin  than  that  all  should  have  become  involved  in 
death  in  consequence  of  Adam's  trespass).  So  then — 
as  we  began  to  say — as  by  Adam's  sin  all  became  in- 
volved in  death,  by  Christ's  work  of  righteous  obedience 
is  acceptance  with  God  opened  to  all,  for  the  two  cases 
are  parallel.  Christ  is  the  second  Adam,  come  to  re- 
store to  God's  favor  those  who  as  descendants  of  the  first 
Adam,  are  lost  to  it.  Now  the  Old  Testament  system, 
whose  saving  function  I  deny,  had  just  the  purpose  to 
bring  out  this  indwelling  sin  into  its  greatest  strength, 
so  that  the  case  of  man  was  rendered  even  more  hope- 
less than  before;  but  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ  is  able 
to  overcome  even  this  power  of  sin  when  thus  intensified 
by  the  law  and  to  bring  man  back  to  divine  favour  and 
assure  him  of  eternal  bliss." 

IV.    GoSPEL-RlGKTEOUSNESS  DoES  NoT  PRODUCE 

A  Sinful  Life  (ch.  6). 

The  sixth  chapter  brings  up  and  answers  a 
question  which  naturally  grows  out  of  the  fifth. 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  6s 

In  the  fifth  chapter,  the  eternal  security  of  the 
believer  is  dealt  with,  and  it  is  there  shown  that  a 
saved  man  is  safe.  The  argument  of  the  chapter 
is  summed  up  in  the  statement  with  which  it 
closes:  "Where  sin  abounded,  grace  did  much 
more  abound:  that  as  sin  hath  reigned  unto 
death,  even  so  might  grace  reign  through  right- 
eousness unto  eternal  life  by  Jesus  Christ  our 
Lord." 

The  question  now  very  naturally  presents 
itself:  will  not  this  teaching  as  to  gospel-right- 
eousness encourage  and  promote  a  life  of  sin? 
If  a  man  is  assured  that  since  he  is  born  again 
he  is  beyond  all  possibility  of  condemnation  and 
cannot  fail  of  final  salvation,  will  this  not  result 
in  careless  living?  The  answer  is  that  in  his 
new  birth  the  believer  has  come  into  possession 
of  a  new  nature,  which  is  ''created  in  righteous- 
ness and  true  holiness,"  and  that  therefore  he  has 
new  desires:  and  not  only  new  desires,  but  new 
power  to  live  according  to  those  desires.  The 
matter  is  beautifully  worked  out  in  the  chapter 
before  us. 

I.  "What  shall  we  say  then?  Shall  we  con- 
tinue in  sin,  that  grace  may  abound?  (i). 
Grace  abounding  is  a  thing  greatly  to  be  desired. 
If  it  is  produced  by  abounding  sin,  must  we  not 
then  cpnclude  that  we  are  to  persist  in  sin,  in 
order  that  it  may  result  in  more  and  more  grace  ? 
The  answer  to  the  question  raised  in  verse  i  ex- 
tends to  the  14th  verse. 

(i)  "God  forbid!"  (2).    This  is  the  language 


66  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

of  every  Christian  heart.  The  name  of  God  does 
not  really  occur  in  the  Greek  text  here,  which 
would  be  more  literally  rendered,  "Far  be  it!" 
But,  as  Dean  Alford  suggests,  after  following 
the  King  James  Version, 

"God  forbid  is  the  only  adequate  rendering  of  the 
expression  in  the  original,  Let  it  not  be:  for  it  implies 
a  reference  to  an  averting  Power;  and  the  occasion  is 
solemn  enough  to  justify,  in  our  language,  the  mention 
of  that  Power.  The  phrase  is  used  of  some  inference  in 
itself  abhorrent  from  reverence  or  piety,  or  precluded 
by  some  acknowledged  fact  inconsistent  therewith.  The 
latter  is  here  the  ground  of  rejection.  An  acknowl- 
edged fact  in  the  Christian  life  follows,  which  precludes 
our  persisting  in  our  sin." 

(2)  "We  who  died  to  sin,  how  shall  we  any 
longer  live  therein?"  (2,  R.  V.).  This  is  the 
force  of  this  verse,  literally  translated.  It  is  rot 
that  we  "are  dead, '  for  we  are  not  dead.  We 
died,  but  we  have  risen  from  the  dead.  Both  of 
these  great  and  wonderful  facts — our  death  and 
our  resurrection — are  dealt  with  in  this  para- 
graph. 

(3)  "Are  ye  ignorant  that  all  we  who  were 
baptized  into  Christ  Jesus  were  baptized  into 
His  death?"  (3,  R.  V.).  To  understand  this 
reference,  we  must  go  to  i  Cor.  12:  12,  13,  where 
we  learn  that  all  who  are  born  again — and  when 
they  are  born  again — are  made  members  of  the 
body  of  Christ  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit : 
"For  in  one  Spirit  were  we  all  baptized  into  one 
body."     The  same  subject  is  discussed  also  in 


THB  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  67 

Gal.  :^:26-2%:  ''For  ye  are  all  sons  of  God, 
through  faith,  in  Christ  Jesus.  For  as  many  of 
you  as  were  baptized  into  Christ  did  put  on 
Christ.  There  can  be  neither  Jew  nor  Greek, 
there  can  be  neither  bond  nor  free,  there  can  be 
no  male  and  female;  for  ye  all  are  one  man  in 
Christ  Jesus"  (R.  V.).  Now,  here,  in  Rom.  6:  3, 
we  are  taught  not  only  that  we  have  been  baptized 
into  Christ,  but  that  through  this  baptism  into 
Him  we  have  been  "baptized  into  His  death." 
The  death  referred  to  is  of  Christ's  death  on  the 
cross  of  Calvary.  Our  baptism  into  His  death 
took  place  when  we,  having  believed,  were  born 
again  and  joined  to  Him  by  the  Holy  Spirit.  We 
were  then  made  "members  of  His  body,  of  His 
flesh,  and  of  His  bones"  (Eph.  5:30),  and  from 
that  time  we  have  been  reckoned  as  partakers  in 
whatever  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  ever  did  for  us. 
He  died  for  us,  and  according  to  God's  reckoning, 
we  died  in  that  death.  He  was  also  buried  for 
us,  and  He  rose  again  for  us,  and  our  baptism 
into  Him  includes  all  these  things.  We  were 
baptized  into  His  burial  and  into  His  resurrection. 
But  the  great  fact  which  must  first  be  grasped 
and  apprehended  is  the  fact  of  our  death  in  Him. 
For  "we  thus  reckon,  that  if  one  died  for  all, 
then  all  died"  (2  Cor.  5:  14).  Of  course  there 
is  a  sense  in  which  all  this  was  accomplished  in 
the  reckoning  of  God  before  we  believed  and  even 
before  we  were  born.  In  the  sight  of  Him  Who 
sees  the  end  from  the  beginning,  we  were  chosen 
in   Christ    from   before   the    foundation   of   the 


68  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

world,  and  in  God's  book  all  Christ's  members 
were  written,  when  as  yet  there  was  none  of  them 
(Ps.  136:16);  but  viewed  from  our  present 
human  standpoint,  we  may  say  that  this  was 
actualized  for  us  when  we  believed  on  Christ  and 
were  joined  to  Him,  being  baptized  into  Him  by 
the  Holy  Spirit. 

(4)  "Therefore"  (4).  In  this  verse  the  sym- 
bol of  water  baptism  is  taken  up,  and  its  warrant 
pointed  out.  Because  we  have  been  joined  to 
Christ  by  the  baptism  with  the  Holy  Spirit,  thus 
being  "baptized  into  His  death,"  therefore  we 
submit  ourselves  to  the  rite  of  water  baptism,  in 
vrhich  are  symbolized  the  death  and  burial  and 
resurrection  of  the  Lord  Jesus  in  our  room  and 
stead,  and  our  death  and  burial  and  resurrection 
in  Him.  And  in  water  baptism  the  believer  not 
only  looks  backward  to  what  has  been  done  for 
him  in  Christ,  and  to  what,  in  God's  reckoning, 
he  himself  is  accounted  to  have  done  in  Christ, 
but  he  also  looks  forward  to  a  "walk  in  newness 
of  life."  Baptism  in  water  is  indeed  "a  form," 
but  it  is  also  more  than  a  form.  When  rightly 
entered  into  and  intelligently  apprehended,  it 
signifies  the  believer's  faith,  not  only  in  what  God 
hath  wrought  for  him  in  the  person  of  His  divine 
Substitute,  but  also  in  what  God  will  do  for  him, 
and  in  him,  and  through  him  "in  newness  of  life." 

(5)  "For  if  we  are  become  identified  with 
Him  in  the  likeness  of  His  death,  so  also  we 
shall  be  of  His  resurrection" (5,  Darby).  "This 
verse  tells  why  there  may  be  a  new  walk  in  point- 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  69 

ing  out  the  power  of  that  walk.  The  reason  is 
that,  as  we  are  one  with  Him  in  His  death,  so 
are  we  also  in  His  resurrection,  being  endowed  in 
the  latter  with  the  same  life  which  He  received 
in  rising  from  the  tomb.  The  reference  is  not 
to  our  future  bodily  resurrection.  *For  if  (or 
"as")  a  graft  in  a  tree  (Jno.  15),  we  became  (not 
"planted,"  but)  grown  together  (with  him)  in  the 
likeness  of  his  death  (viz:  our  baptism),  so  shall 
we  be  also  still  grown  together  (with  Him)  in 
the  likeness  of  His  resurrection  (viz:  our  emer- 
gence from  the  watery  grave).'  To  state  this 
idea  of  union  Paul  has  not  abandoned  his  figure 
of  baptism.  Grafting,  to  be  sure,  is  not  done  in 
water,  but  the  union  in  baptism  is  as  vital  as  that 
between  the  graft  and  the  tree.  It  must  be  noted 
that  none  can  share  in  Christ's  resurrection  life 
except  by  first  dying.  We  are  buried  in  order  to 
be  raised  (Jno.  12:24).  Now  for  the  first  time 
Paul  has  clearly  asserted  union  with  Christ.  For 
the  thought  is,  if  we  went  into  the  baptism  in 
union,  why  should  we  not  come  out  in  union? 
The  oneness  in  the  immersion  is  proof  of  the  one- 
ness in  the  emersion"  (Stifler) . 

(6)  "Our  old  man  was  crucified  with  Him" 
(6,  R.  v.).  This  definite  assertion  is  repeated  in 
Gal.  2 :  20,  "I  have  been  crucified  with  Christ ;" 
and  the  reason  for  this  crucifixion  is  given  in  the 
verse  before  us,  "that  the  body  of  sin  might  be 
done  away,  that  so  we  should  no  longer  be  in 
bondage  to  sin."  The  emphasis  here  is  on  the 
"so."    Before  our  regeneration,  we  were  in  slav- 


70  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

ery — "sold  under  sin."  God's  way  of  delivering 
us  from  this  slavery  was  to  cause  us  to  pay  the 
penalty,  and  this  we  did  in  the  person  of  our 
Substitute;  and  so  we  are  no  longer  in  bondage 
to  sin. 

(7)  "For  he  that  hath  died  is  released  from 
sin"  (7,  R.  V.  margin).  The  believer  is  here 
pictured  as  the  criminal  who  has  paid  the  penalty 
for  his  crime.  He  was  guilty,  he  was  sentenced 
to  death,  he  was  executed,  and  now  there  is  noth- 
ing against  him,  he  is  freed  from  sin.  If  he  ap- 
prehends this,  he  may  sing  from  a  full  heart : 

"I  do  believe,  1  now  believe, 

That  Jesus  died  for  me ; 
And  through  His  blood,  His  precious  blood, 
I  am  from  sin  set  free." 

(8)  "But  if  v^^e  died  with  Christ,  we  believe 
that  we  shall  also  live  with  Him"  (8-10,  R.  V.). 
The  reason  for  this  wonderful  statement,  based 
upon  the  "full  assurance  of  faith,"  is  given  in 
verses  9  and  10.  Christ  Who  died,  has  been 
raised  from  the  dead,  and  djeth  no  more;  death 
hath  no  more  dominion  over  Him ;  and  this  being 
true  for  Him,  it  is  also  true  for  those  who  died 
in  Him.  For  them,  as  well  as  for  Him,  the  death 
that  took  place  on  Calvary  accomplished  the  full- 
est vindication  of  the  law,  and  answered  all  the 
demands  of  righteousness.  It  was  "once  for  all" 
(see  R.  V.  margin;  compare  Heb.  7:27).  As  to 
the  life  unto  which  we  are  raised,  it  is  not  a  life 
unto  sin,  for  sin  has  no  claim  upon  it.    It  is  to  be 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD,  71 

lived  unto  God  (v.  10).  "One  died  for  all,  there- 
fore all  died ;  and  He  died  for  all,  that  they  that 
live  should  no  longer  live  unto  themselves,  but 
unto  Him  Who  for  their  sakes  died  and  rose 
again"  (2  Cor.  5:  14,  15,  R.  V.). 

(9)  "Even  so  reckon  ye  also  youselves  to  be 
dead  unto  sin,  but  alive  unto  God  in  Christ 
Jesus"  (11,  R.  v.).  This  is  an  exhortation  to 
adopt  for  ourselves  the  reckoning  of  God.  He 
reckons  us  to  have  died  to  sin :  let  us  also  reckon 
it.  He  reckons  us  to  have  been  brought  again 
from  the  dead  and  into  a  life  which  is  to  be  unto 
Him.  And  there  is  more  than  reckoning  here, 
for  by  His  grace  and  power  we  have  been  born 
again,  and  are  really  and  actually  in  possession 
of  a  new  life;,  and  this  new  life  is  "unto  God," 
because  it  is  God's  own  life.  We  have  become 
"partakers  of  the  divine  nature."  We  are  God's 
beloved  children.  Having  heard  the  words  of 
Jesus  and  believed  Him  that  sent  Him,  we  have 
eternal  life  and  shall  not  come  into  judgment,  but 
have  passed  out  of  death  into  life  (Jno.  5  :  24). 

(10)  "Let  not  sin  therefore  reign  in  your 
mortal  body,  that  ye  should  obey  its  desires" 
(12,  iQii  Bible).  Dr.  Weymouth  translates 
here: 

"Let  not  sin  therefore  reign  as  king  in  your  mortal 
bodies,  causing  you  to  be  in  subjection  to  their  cravings ; 
and  no  longer  lend  your  faculties  as  unrighteous  weap- 
ons for  sin  to  use ;  on  the  contrary  surrender  your  very 
selves  to  God  as  living  men  who  have  risen  frorri  the 
dead,  and  surrender  your  several  faculties  to  God,  to  be 
used  as  weapons  to  maintain  the  right"  (vs.  12,  13). 


^2  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

(ii)   "For  sin  shall  not  be  lord  over  you, 
since  you  are  subjects  not  of  law  but  of  grace" 

(14,  Weymouth).  Here  is  a  statement  which 
confuses  the  legaHst,  for  he  would  put  it  exactly 
the  other  way  about.  He  would  say,  "Sin  shall 
have  dominion  over  us  unless  we  see  ourselves 
to  be  under  law  and  not  under  grace."  He  rea- 
sons that  Christians  are  to  be  kept  from  sinning 
through  the  terror  of  the  law ;  and  thus  he  would 
make  the  law  to  be  a  ministration,  not  of  con- 
demnation and  death,  but  of  justification  and  life 
(compare  2  Cor.  3).  The  statement  of  Rom.  6: 
14  can  be  apprehended  only  by  the  believer  who 
sees  that  in  Christ  there  is  an  absolute  end  of  the 
law  (Rom.  10:  4).  "The  sting  of  death  is  sin, 
and  the  strength  of  sin" — the  thing  that  empow- 
ers sin  to  sting  unto  death — "is  the  law.  But 
thanks  be  to  God,  which  giveth  us  the  victory 
through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ"  (i  Cor.  15:56, 
57).  This  victory  is  brought  about  by  the  utter 
abolition  of  the  law,  "which  is  done  away  in 
Christ"  (2  Cor.  3:  14).  The  gospel  In  its  power 
and  beauty  can  never  be  fully  seen  until  this  point 
is  settled. 

"For  as  many  as  are  of  the  works  of  the  law  are  under 

the  curse The  law  is  not  of  faith Christ  hath 

redeemed  us  from  the  curse  of  the  law,  being  made  a 

curse  for  us Wherefore  then  serveth  the  law?    It 

was  added  because  of  transgressions,  till  the  Seed  should 

come  to  Whom  the  promise  was  made But  before 

faith  came,  we  were  kept  under  the  law,  shut  up  unto  the 
faith  which  should  afterwards  be  revealed.  Wherefore 
the  law  was  our  schoolmaster  to  bring  us  unto  Christ, 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  73 

that  we  might  be  justified  by  faith.  But  after  that  faith 
is  come,  we  are  no  longer  under  a  schoolmaster"  (Gal. 
3:10-25). 

''Free  from  the  law,  oh,  happy  condition, 
Jesus  hath  bled,  and  there  is  remission; 
Curs'd  by  the  law  and  bruised  by  the  fall, 
Grace  hath  redeemed  us  once  for  all. 

"Now  we  are  free — there's  no  condemnation, 
Jesus  provides  a  perfect  salvation ; 
'Come  unto  Me,'  or,  hear  His  sweet  call, 
Come,  and  He  saves  us  once  for  all. 

"  'Children  of  God,'  oh,  glorious  calling. 
Surely  His  grace  will  keep  us  from  falling; 
Passing  from  death  to  life  at  His  call, 
Blessed  salvation  ©nee  for  all !" 

2.  "What  then?  shall  we  sin,  because  we  are 
not  under  law,  but  under  grace?"  (15,  R.  V,). 
The  argument  of  verses  1-14,  is  that  the  believer 
is  not  led  into  a  sinful  life  by  the  consideration  of 
his  eternal  security  in  Christ.  Having  received 
a  new  nature  by  regeneration,  he  is  now  actuated 
by  new  desires,  and  not  only  by  desires,  but  by 
new  power.  It  would  be  indeed  pitiful  if  the 
new-born  child  of  God,  with  his  new  desires 
toward  God,  should  be  left  without  power 
to  accomplish  these  desires.  God  has  not 
left  him  thus.  Having  died  to  sin,  he  is 
alive  unto  God,  and  God  is  working  in  him  both 
to  will  His  good  pleasure  and  to  do  it  (Phil.  2: 
13).  The  concluding  statement  of  the  section  is 
that  sin  has  no  dominion  over  the  believer  be- 


74  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

cause  he  is  freed  from  law,  and  is  under  grace. 
Sin  cannot  inflict  its  deadly  sting,  for  "the 
strength  of  sin,"  which  ''is  the  law"  (i  Cor.  15: 
56),  is  "done  away"  (2  Cor.  3:11-14).  In  the 
7th  chapter  this  freedom  from  law  is  taken  up  in 
detail. 

But  a  new  question  confronts  us  here,  growing 
naturally  out  of  this  statement  of  the  believer's 
freedom  from  law:  "What  then?  shall  we  sin, 
because  we  are  not  under  law,  but  under  grace  ?" 
(15).  The  behever's  response  to  this  question  is 
identical  with  the  response  of  verse  2,  "God  for- 
bid," and  the  remainder  of  the  chapter  is  oc- 
cupied with  a  fuller  answer  to  the  question  raised. 

(i)  **Do  you  not  knoy^  that  you  are  the 
slaves  of  him  whom  you  obey,  to  whom  you 
present  youselves  as  obedient  slaves,  be  it  of 
sin  for  death  or  of  obedience  for  uprightness? 
But,  thank  God,  though  you  were  slaves  of  sin 
you  became  cordially  obedient  to  that  type  of 
teaching  to  which  you  were  handed  over. 
Freed  from  sin  you  became  slaves  to  upright- 
ness. (I  am  speaking  from  a  human  stand- 
point, owing  to  the  weakness  of  your  flesh)" 
(vs.  16-19,  Moffatfs  translation).  The  apostle 
is  here  addressing  himself  to  the  question  raised 
in  the  15th  verse.  "This  question,"  says  Dr. 
Stifler,  *'was  sure  to  arise,  because  human  so- 
cieties and  governments  know  of  no  way  to  re- 
strain sin  but  by  law  and  its  penalty.  The  state's 
ruler  is  'the  minister  of  God,  a  revenger  to 
execute  wrath  upon  him  that  doeth  evil'  (13:4) 


THB  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  75 

in  breaking  the  law.  The  assertion  *ye  are  not 
under  law'  was  made  to  turn  the  justified  man's 
gaze  from  Moses  to  Christ,  from  law  to  grace. 
It  is  natural  to  suppose  that  God's  method  in  the 
gospel  would  follow  the  method  of  human  gov- 
ernment, but  the  principle  of  fear  is  not  strong 
enough  to  keep  men  in  the  path  of  duty.  Union 
with  Christ  is  God's  method  of  giving  man  victory 
over  sin.    Says  Mr.  Grant : 

"Everything  here  will  be  questioned,  however,  by 
the  soul  ignorant  of  itself  and  of  God,  and  such  ques- 
.tions,  because  of  their  importance,  must  have  careful  an- 
swer. Again,  therefore,  we  have  the  objection  of  the 
mere  moralist  taken  up  to  be  indignantly  set  aside: 
'What  then  ?  Are  we  to  sin,  because  we  are  not  under  law, 
but  under  grace?  Far  be  the  thought.'  Yet  the  heart 
of  man  is  in  fact  capable  of  such  abuse  of  divine  good- 
ness ;  yes,  but  what  would  such  an  argument  mean  ?  A 
soul  set  free  willingly  yielding  itself  to  that  from  which 
God  has  delivered  it?  Is  this  deliverance  when  the  heart 
is  still  deliberately  seeking  that  from  which  it  assumes 
to  be  delivered?  Well,  says  the  apostle,  if  I  am  ad- 
dressing any  in  such  a  condition,  let  me  remind  them 
that  here  the  whole  nature  of  God  is  in  question.  Does 
not  then  the  way  of  sin,  deliberately  pursued,  end  in 
death?  Does  the  gospel  change  this  relation  of  sin  to 
death?  Does  it  not  manifest  God,  and  in  all  His  at- 
tributes? His  hoHness  being  more  shown  indeed  in  the 
agony  of  the  cross,  than  even  the  uttermost  punishment 
of  the  sinner  could  have  shown  it.  Thus  then,  if  one 
freely  yields  himself  to  obey  a  master,  he  cannot  but 
be  reckoned  as  belonging  to  the  master  he  has  chosen, 
whether  on  the  one  hand  to  sin  with  its  terrible  wages, 
or  of  obedience  to  God  for  righteousness.  In  all  this 
there  rules  a  fundamental  necessity,  which  the  gospel 


76  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

could  not  subvert  and  be  still  a  gospel"    ("Numerical 
Bible"). 

In  verse  17  the  apostle  gives  thanks  concern- 
ing the  Roman  believers  for  their  escape  from  the 
former  bondage  of  sin.  This  escape  had  been  by 
means  of  their  obedience  to  that  mold  of  teaching 
into  which  they  had  been  delivered.  The  Revis- 
ion is  to  be  preferred  here,  as  the  King  James 
Version  reverses  the  figure.  It  does  seem  natural, 
as  Stifler  points  out,  to  say  a  "form  of  doctrine 
which  was  delivered  you."  But  that  is  not  what 
Paul  says  here.  "If  it  were,  one  shining  point 
would  be  lost,  that  both  they  and  God  conjoined 
in  the  act  of  their  salvation.  They  obeyed  from 
the  heart  the  type  of  teaching — the  gospel — into 
whose  power  His  grace  delivered  them." 

The  statement  of  verse  7  is  repeated  in  verse 
18,  namely,  that  the  believer  is  free  from  sin,  and 
in  the  latter  passage  the  reverse  of  the  proposi- 
tion is  also  set  forth.  In  becoming  free  from  sin 
the  Christian  has  become  the  bondservant  of 
righteousness,  that  is  to  say,  he  has,  by  the  won- 
drous change  wrought  in  him  in  regeneration, 
come  into  the  place  where  righteousness  becomes 
his  master  instead  of  sin.  And  this  not  through 
fear  of  law,  but  by  the  power  of  the  indwelling 
Christ ;  "not  after  the  law  of  a  carnal  command- 
ment, but  after  the  power  of  an  endless  life" 
(Heb.  7:16). 

(2)  "I  speak  after  the  manner  of  men"  (19- 
22).     The  chapter  closes  with  a  practical  ex- 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  77 

hortation  growing  out  of  all  this.  The  believer 
is  pointed  to  the  new  life  with  its  new  possibilities. 
The  paragraph  is  paraphrased  thus  by  Dr. 
George  Barker  Stevens: 

"I  am  applying  to  these  high  spiritual  truths  terms 
derived  from  human  relations  so  as  to  make  the  con- 
trast between  the  characteristic  of  the  old  life  and  that 
of  the  new  plain  to  the  most  undiscerning.  And  I  apply 
this  truth  thus:  just  as  you  used  to  allow  your  bodily 
powers  to  be  dominated  by  sin,  so  you  should  now,  as 
Christians,  make  them  the  means  of  serving  and  pro- 
moting holiness  of  life.  For  (to  repeat  my  distinction 
between  the  two  kinds  of  life)  in  your  old  life  you 
were  freemen  in  respect  of  righteousness,  and  bondmen 
in  respect  of  sin ;  the  opposite  is  now  true ;  you  are  now 
free  from  sin  and  bound  to  righteousness.  But  looking 
away  from  the  principle  to  the  consequences  of  the  old 
sinful  life,  what  reward  did  it  bring?  Only  a  fruitage 
of  which  you  are  ashamed,  for  all  its  results  are  in  the 
line  of  that  final  issue,  moral  death.  But  the  opposite 
of  all  this  is  your  case  now.  Being  freemen  in  relation 
to  sin  and  bondmen  in  relation  to  God,  you  have  holi- 
ness and  everlasting  life  as  your  portion." 

(3)  "For  the  wages  of  sin  is  death;  but  the 
free  gift  of  God  is  eternal  life  in  Christ  Jesus 
our  Lord"  (23,  R.  V.).  Our  eternal  life  is  not 
only  "through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord,"  as  in  the 
King  James  Version.  It  is  in  Christ  Himself  and 
is  never  separated  from  Him.  It  is  in  us  of 
course,  but  that  is  because  we  are  in  Him.  ''This 
is  the  record,  that  God  hath  given  to  us  eternal 
life,  and  this  life  is  In  His  Son.  He  that  hath  the 
Son  hath  life ;  and  he  that  hath  not  the  Son  of 
God  hath  not  life"  (i  Jno.  5:  11,  12). 


78  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

This  cannot  be  too  strongly  insisted  upon. 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  eternal  life  apart  from 
Christ.  The  gospel  does  not  offer  to  man  a  life 
detached  from  Christ.  In  the  gospel  God  has 
provided  a  place  in  Christ  and  a  share  in  His  life 
to  all  who  come  unto  Him.  The  gospel  finds  man 
dead  as  "the  wages  of  sin;"  it  brings  him  "out 
of  death  into  life"  ( Jno.  5 :  24)  ;  and  from  the 
moment  of  his  regeneration  the  believer  has 
Christ  in  him  as  his  life  (Col.  3:4). 

"Buried  with  Christ,  and  raised  with  Him  too; 
What  is  there  left  for  me  to  do? 
Simply  to  cease  from  struggling  and  strife, 
Simply  to  'walk  in  newness  of  life.' 

"  'Risen  with  Christ/  my  glorious  Head, 
Holiness  now  the  pathway  I  tread ; 
Beautiful  thought,  while  walking  therein : 
'He  that  is  dead  is  freed  from  sin,' 

"Living  with  Christ,  Who  'dieth  no  more,' 
Following  Christ,  Who  goeth  before ; 
I  am  from  bondage  utterly  freed, 
Reckoning  self  as  'dead  indeed.' 

"Living  for  Christ,  my  members  I  yield, 
Servants  to  God,  for  evermore  sealed; 
'Not  under  law,'  I'm  now  'under  grace,' 
Sin  is  dethroned,  and  Christ  takes  its  place. 

"Growing  in  Christ:   no  more  shall  be  named 
Things  of  which  now  I'm  truly  ashamed; 
'Fruit  unto  holiness'  will  I  bear, 
Life  evermore,  the  end  I  shall  share." 


THH  RIGHTBOUSNBSS  OP  GOD.  79 

V.  The  Law  Cannot  Produce  a  Holy  Life 
(ch.  7). 

We  now  come  to  the  7th  chapter,  in  which  it 
is  set  forth,  that  the  law  being  powerless  to  justi- 
fy, is  equally  unable  to  sanctify.  In  the  first  six 
chapters  three  wonderful  statements  concerning 
the  law  have  been  made,  namely:  (i)  "By  the 
deeds  of  the  law  there  shall  no  flesh  be  justified 
in  His  sight"  (3:20);  (2)  "The  law  entered, 
that  the  offence  might  abound"  (5:20);  (3) 
"Ye  are  not  under  the  law"  (6:14).  These  three 
propositions,  as  has  been  pointed  out  by  others, 
furnish  a  working  analysis  of  the  7th  chapter,  as 
follows:  (i)  The  believer's  freedom  from  law 
(vs.  1-6)  ;  (2)  Though  the  law  makes  sin  to 
abound,  the  law  nevertheless  is  not  sinful  (vs. 
7-13)  ;  (3)  "^^^  l^w  cannot  deliver  from  the 
flesh  (vs.  14-25).  We  will  consider  the  chapter 
in  the  order  thus  indicated. 

I.  "Ye  also  were  made  dead  to  the  law"  (i- 
6).  This  statement  of  verse  4,  as  given  by  the 
Revision,  is  the  core  of  the  paragraph. 

(i)  "The  law  hath  dominion  over  a  man 
as  long  as  he  liveth"  (i).  The  marriage  re- 
lation is  used  as  the  basis  of  an  illustration  show- 
ing how  and  why  the  Christian  is  freed  from  law. 
"Know  ye  not,  brethren,  (for  I  speak  to  them 
that  know  the  law)."  The  word  for  brethren 
here  is  "adelphoi,"  and  stands  for  the  whole 
brotherhood  in  the  Roman  Church,  and  is  not, 
as  some  writers  have  insisted,  confined  to  the 


8o  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Jewish  believers  in  that  brotherhood.  It  is  true 
that  only  the  Jews  had  been  actually  under  the 
law  of  Sinai,  for  the  Gentiles  have  not  the  law 
(Rom.  2:  14),  yet  the  apostle  here,  by  the  Spirit, 
is  proceeding  to  show  the  absence  of  the  legalistic 
principle  in  God's  dealings  with  His  people  in  the 
gospel.  They  are  not  under  law,  but  under 
grace,  and  these  are  two  contrasting  principles 
which  cannot  be  yoked  together.  They  pull  in 
opposite  directions.  If  a  man  is  under  law,  he 
is  not  under  grace ;  and  if  he  is  under  grace,  he 
is  not  under  law.  This  proposition  ought  to  be 
self-evident.  The  apostle  writes  further,  "I 
speak  to  them  that  know  law."  He  was  address- 
ing intelligent  people  who  knew  the  working  of 
law  as  a  principle.  They  lived  in  Rome,  where 
the  very  meaning  of  law,  and  of  force  through 
law,  had  been  taught  to  the  world.  There  is  no 
definite  article  before  the  word  "law'*  in  the 
parenthetical  passage  of  verse  one.  He  is  speak- 
ing for  the  moment  of  law  as  a  principle,  rather 
than  the  law  of  Sinai ;  howbeit,  he  has  in  view  all 
the  time  throughout  the  illustration  the  freedom 
of  the  believer  from  the  thunderings  of  Sinai. 

(2)  "The  woman  which  hath  an  husband'* 
(2).  Here  the  case  is  brought  before  us  of  a 
married  woman  "bound  by  the  law  to  her  hus- 
band so  long  as  he  liveth ;  but  if  the  husband  be 
dead,  she  is  loosed  from  the  law  of  her  husband.'* 
This  is  simple  enough.  The  marriage  relation 
continues  of  force  between  the  two  parties  enter- 
ing into  it  so  long  as  they  both  shall  live. 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  8i 

(3)  "But  if  her  husband  be  dead,  she  is  free" 
(3).  This  also  is  perfectly  clear.  A  married 
woman,  if  she  marries  another  man  than  her  hus- 
band, is  guilty  of  bigamy:  *'she  shall  be  called 
an  adulteress :  but  if  her  husband  be  dead,  she  is 
free  from  that  law ;  so  that  she  is  no  adulteress, 
though  she  be  married  to  another  man." 
(4)  "Ye  also  are  become  dead  to  the  law  by 
the  body  of  Christ"  (4).  Much  confusion  is 
found  just  here  among  the  commentators.  It 
is  objected  that  Paul  is  mixed  in  his  metaphor, 
since,  in  the  illustration,  it  is  the  husband  that 
dies,  whereas,  in  the  application,  it  is  the  wife 
who  is  "become  dead."  But  the  matter  is  clear 
enough  when  it  is  kept  in  mind  precisely  what  the 
apostle  writes.  He  does  not  say  merely  "ye  are 
dead,"  but  "ye  also  were  made  dead  to  the  law 
through  the  body  of  Christ"  (R.  V.).  A  wife,  by 
her  husband's  death,  has  ceased  to  be  a  wife.  Be- 
fore the  event  of  his  death,  there  was  a  wife; 
after  that  event,  the  wife  is  no  more.  The  woman 
remains,  but  she  has  become  dead  to  the  law 
which  bound  her  to  her  husband,  and  her  death  to 
that  law  has  been  brought  about  by  the  death  of 
her  husband.  It  is  not  the  metaphor  of  the  apostle 
that  is  mixed,  but  the  commentators. 

(5)  "That  ye  should  be  married  to  another" 
(4) .  Let  the  reader  be  very  careful  at  this  point. 
It  at  first  seems  strange  that  we  should  read  here 
in  the  same  sentence  of  "the  body  of  Christ," 
and  "another,  even  to  Him  Who  is  raised  from 
the  dead."   For  was  it  not  the  same  Christ  that 


82  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

died  Who  was  raieed  from  the  dead  ?  How,  then, 
can  He  be  called  "another?"  Second  Cor.  5  will 
help  us  here.  In  verses  14  to  16  of  that  chapter  it 
is  written :  "One  died  for  all,  therefore  all  died ; 
and  He  died  for  all,  that  they  that  live  should  no 
longer  live  unto  themselves,  but  unto  Him  Who 
for  their  sakes  died  and  rose  again.  Wherefore 
we  henceforth  know  no  man  after  the  flesh : 
even  though  we  have  known  Christ  after  the 
flesh,  yet  now  we  know  Him  so  no  more."  By 
this  statement  we  learn:  (i)  That,  in  the  reck- 
oning of  God,  when  Christ  died  on  the  cross,  the 
believer  died  with  Him.  So,  here  in  Romans,  the 
wife,  as  a  wife,  died  in  her  husband's  death ;  (2) 
that,  when  Jesus  arose  from  the  dead,  we  rose 
from  the  dead  with  Him,  that  henceforth  we 
should  live  not  unto  ourselves,  but  unto  Him  in 
Whom  we  died  and  rose  again;  and  (3)  that 
the  Christ  we  now  know  is  not  the  Christ  ac- 
cording to  the  flesh.  Of  course  there  is  a  sense 
in  which  He  is  the  same  Jesus  as  before  the 
cross,  but,  in  the  gospel  sense.  He  is  far  dif- 
ferent. Our  trust  centers  not  in  the  Christ 
of  Galilee,  but  in  the  Christ  of  glory;  not 
in  the  Man  Jesus,  Who  walked  about  doing 
good  in  the  land  of  Palestine  nineteen  centuries 
ago,  but  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  Who  sits  to- 
day at  the  right  hand  of  the  Majesty  on  high 
making  intercession  for  us — "managing  our  con- 
cerns for  us"  (Heb.  7:25,  Wakefield's  transla- 
tion). This  point  needs  to  be  emphasized  in  this 
day.     The  subtle  appeal  found  everywhere  that 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  83 

we  should  go  "back  to  Christ,"  rejecting  the 
teaching  of  the  epistles  and  looking  for  our  in- 
struction to  His  kingdom  teachings  found  in  the 
synoptic  gospels,  is  nothing  short  of  an  invention 
of  the  adversary.  The  epistles  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment are  the  teachings  of  Christ  as  truly  as  His 
own  words  quoted  in  the  gospels.  And  they  are 
the  teachings  of  the  risen  Christ,  the  glorified 
Christ,  the  present  Christ,  the  Man  Christ  Jesus, 
the  Man  with  Whom  we  have  to  do,  the  Man  to 
Whom  we  are  now  married. 

(6)  "That  we  should  bring  forth  fruit  unto 
God"  (4).  In  our  natural  condition,  being  "chil- 
dren of  wrath,  even  as  others"  (Eph.  2:3),  and 
joined,  or  married,  to  sin,  our  fruit,  the  issue  of 
that  marriage,  the  offspring  of  that  relation,  was 
such  as  to  make  us  ashamed.  But  now,  being 
made  free  from  sin  and  having  become  servants 
to  God,  we  have  our  fruit  unto  holiness  (6:  22). 
The  purpose  of  the  marriage  relation  is  that  chil- 
dren may  be  born  and  reared ;  they  are  the  logi- 
cal issue  of  this  relationship.  Just  so,  as  in  our 
former  marriage  to  sin,  the  issue  was  uncleanness 
and  iniquity  (6:  19),  it  is  the  purpose  of  our 
new  marriage,  being  joined  in  this  holy  relation 
to  the  risen  Christ,  that  we  should  bring  forth 
fruit  unto  God.  This  is  all  brought  out  in  the 
5th  and  6th  verses  of  our  chapter :  "For  when  we 
were  in  the  flesh,  the  sinful  passions  (Gr.  passions 
of  sins),  which  were  through  the  law,  wrought 
in  our  members  to  bring  forth  fruit  unto  death. 
But  now  we  have  been  discharged  from  the  law, 


84  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

having  died  to  that  wherein  we  were  held"  (the 
King  James  rendering,  ''that  being  dead  wherein 
we  were  held,"  is  incorrect). 

(7)  "So  that  we  serve  in  newness  of  the 
Spirit,  and  not  in  oldness  of  the  letter"  (6,  R. 
V. ) .  The  Revised  Version  is  to  be  preferred  here 
above  the  King  James.  It  is  not  merely  that  we 
have  been  delivered  from  the  bondage  of  sin  in 
order  "that  we  should  serve  in  newness  of  spirit," 
but  "so  that  we  serve  in  newness  of  the  Spirit." 
The  contrast  between  "Spirit"  and  "letter"  here 
is  the  same  as  in  2  Cor.  3,  where  the  Spirit  means 
the  Holy  Spirit,  Who  is  living  and  working  in 
and  through  the  Christian;  while  the  letter  means 
the  law  of  Sinai,  the  old  covenant — a  covenant  of 
letters  written  and  engraven  in  stones.  To  this 
Dean  Alford  agrees,  who  says,  that  the  Spirit 
here  refers  to  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God,  Who  or- 
iginates and  penetrates  the  Christian  life;  and 
that  the  letter  signifies  the  law,  being  only  a  col- 
lection of  precepts  and  prohibitions,  while  the 
gospel  is  a  service  of  freedom,  ruled  by  the 
Spirit,  Whose  presence  is  liberty.  "The  qualita- 
tively expressed  pneiimatos,  meaning  in  concrete 
application  the  Holy  Spirit  as  the  efficient  prin- 
ciple of  the  Christian  life,  and  the  qualitative 
grammatos,  characterizing  the  law  according  to 
its  nature  and  character  as  non-living  and  drawn 
up  in  letters,  are  the  specifically  heterogeneous 
factors  on  which  the  two  contrasted  states  are 
dependent"  fH.  A.  W.  Meyer).  "The  newness  is 
the  new  spiritual  state,   or  union  with   Christ; 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OP  GOD.  85 

the  oldness  of  the  letter  was  their  former  state 
under  the  law.  The  letter  means  the  law.  This 
new  service  produced  holy  fruit;  the  service 
under  law  brought  forth  fruit  for  death"  (Stif- 
ler).  ''Being  married  to  a  new  husband  we  must 
change  our  way ;  still  we  must  serve,  but  it  is  a 
service  that  is  perfect  freedom,  whereas  the  serv- 
ice of  sin  was  a  perfect  drudgery There 

must  be  a  renovation  of  our  spirit  wrought  by 
the  Spirit  of  God,  and  in  that  we  must  serve. 
. . .  . .  We  are  under  the  dispensation  of  the  Spirit, 
and  therefore  must  be  spiritual,  and  serve  in  the 

Spirit It  becomes  us  to  worship  in  the  veil 

and  no  longer  in  the  outer  court"  (Matthew 
Henry). 

"Awaked  by  Sinai's  awful  sound, 
My  soul  in  bonds  of  guilt  I  found, 

And  knew  not  where  to  go ; 
Eternal  truth  did  loud  proclaim, 
'The  sinner  must  be  born  again, 

Or  sink  in  endless  woe.' 

"Amazed  I  stood,  but  could  not  tell 
Which  way  to  shun  the  gates  of  hell, 

For  death  and  hell  drew  near ; 
I  strove,  indeed,  but  strove  in  vain : 
'The  sinner  must  be  born  again' 

Still  sounded  in  my  ear. 

"When  to  the  law  I  trembling  fled, 
It  poured  its  curses  on  my  head ; 

I  no  relief  could  find. 
This  fearful  truth  increased  my  pain : 
'The  sinner  must  be  born  again' 

O'erwhelmed  my  tortured  mind. 


86  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

"I  heard  the  law  its  thunders  roll, 
While  guilt  lay  heavy  on  my  soul — 

A  vast  oppressive  load ; 
All  creature-aid  I  saw  was  vain ; 
'The  sinner  must  be  born  again,' 

Or  drink  the  wrath  of  God. 

"But  while  1  thus  in  anguish  lay. 
The  bleeding  Saviour  passed  that  way. 

My  bondage  to  remove. 
The  sinner,  once  by  justice  slain, 
Now  by  his  grace  is  born  again, 

And  sings  redeeming  love." 

2.  "The  law  is  holy"  (7-13).  In  this  second 
paragraph  of  the  chapter  it  is  shown  that,  though 
the  law  makes  sin  to  abound,  the  law  nevertheless 
is  not  sinful. 

(i)  "What  shall  we  say  then?  Is  the  law 
sin  (or  sinful)?"  (7).  This  question  naturally 
arises  out  of  what  has  gone  before. 

(2)  "God  forbid.  Nay,  I  had  not  known  sin, 
but  by  the  law"  (7).  That  the  law  is  not  sinful 
is  proved  by  the  very  fact  that  *'by  the  law  is  the 
knowledge  of  sin"  (Rom.  3:20).  A  sinful  law 
would  be  incapable  of  revealing  the  sinfulness  of 
sin.  It  is  because  the  law  is  perfect  as  a  standard 
of  righteousness  that  it  so  clearly  manifests  the 
presence  of  evil,  and  by  this  heavenly  standard, 
every  man  is  convicted  of  sin.  "There  is  no  dif- 
ference :  for  all  have  sinned,  and  come  short  of 
the  glory  of  God"  (Rom.  3:22,  23). 

(3)  "For  I  had  not  known  coveting,  except 
the  law  had  said,  Thou  shalt  not  covet"  (7). 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  Of  GOD.  87 

The  Revision  is  right  here  in  adhering  to  uni- 
formity in  the  translation  of  this  Greek  word, 
rendered,  in  the  King  James  Version,  lust,  covet, 
concupiscence,  etc. 

(4)  "But  sin,  finding  occasion,  wrought  in 
me  through  the  commandment  all  manner  of 
coveting"  (8).  Without  the  commandment,  sin, 
though  present  in  the  heart  of  Saul  of  Tarsus, 
v^as  unsuspected  even  by  himself.  His  conscience 
was  not  aroused,  he  was  not  troubled — "for  with- 
out the  law  sin    was  dead." 

(5)  "For  I  was  alive  without  the  law  once" 
(9).  Conybeare  and  Howson  render  here:  "I 
felt  that  I  was  alive  before,  when  I  knew  no  law." 
And  MacKnight  paraphrases  as  follows :  "Ac- 
cordingly I  was  in  my  own  imagination  entitled 
to  life  while  without  the  knowledge  of  law  for- 
merly." There  is  a  similar  use  of  the  word  "Hfe" 
in  I  Thes.  3  :  8,  ''For  now  we  live,  if  ye  stand  fast 
in  the  Lord."  The  apostle's  meaning  very  evi- 
dently is,  that  he  feels  himself  to  live  on  account 
of  the  gratifying  steadfastness  and  growth  in 
grace  of  his  beloved  fellow-saints  whom  he  had 
led  into  the  knowledge  of  Christ. 

(6)  "But  when  the  commandment  came,  sin 
revived,  and  I  died"  (9).  What  does  Paul  mean 
here  by  the  expression,  "When  the  commandment 
came?"  He  was  brought  up  on  the  command- 
ments, doubtless,  at  his  mother's  knee,  and  the 
commandments  were  studied  assiduously  at  the 
feet  of  Gamaliel ;  but  there  came  a  day  when  his 
eyes  were  opened,  and  he  was  given  to  see  what 


88  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

the  commandments  really  meant,  and  that,  far 
from  being  a  means  of  grace  and  salvation,  they 
were  the  means  of  death  and  condemnation.  Sin 
was  there  all  the  time,  but,  until  the  day  that  the 
commandment  came  with  all  its  crushing  force 
upon  his  consciousness,  sin  gave  him  no  dis- 
quietude. The  strength  of  sin  to  sting  him  to 
death  was  the  law,  and  when  the  law  was  joined 
to  sin  in  his  consciousness,  sin,  which  until  then 
had  been  dead,  came  to  life,  and  he  died  (com- 
pare I  Cor.  15:56,  57;   2  Cor.  3^7-9). 

(7)  "And  the  commandment,  which  was  or- 
dained to  life,  I  found  to  be  unto  death"  (10). 
"Ordained"  is  a  supplied  word,  and  is  really  not 
in  place,  for,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  the  command- 
ment was  not  ordained  to  life.  The  law  is  not  a 
ministration  of  life,  but  of  death  (2  Cor.  3:7). 
And  yet  Paul  could  write  of  the  commandment  as 
being  "unto  life"  because  Moses  has  said,  "He 
that  doeth  these  things  shall  live  by  them"  (Lev. 
18:  5;  Rom.  10:  5).  Saul  of  Tarsus,  like  every 
other  sinner,  found  himself  without  power  to  do 
these  things,  and  so  the  law,  which  was  unto 
life,  he  found  to  be  unto  death.  As  Conybeare 
and  Howson  render  it:  "I  felt  that  I  was  alive 
before,  when  I  knew  no  law ;  but  when  the  com- 
mandment came,  sin  rose  to  life,  and  I  sank  into 
death ;  and  the  very  commandment  whose  end  is 
life,  was  found  to  me  the  cause  of  death  ;  for  my 
sin,  when  it  had  gained  a  vantage  ground  by  the 
commandment,  deceived  me  to  my  fall,  and  slew 
me  by  the  sentence  of  the  law." 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  89 

(8)  "Wherefore  the  law  is  holy,  and  the 
commandment  holy,  and  just,  and  good"  (12). 
This  conclusion  grows  out  of  the  statement  of  the 
iith  verse.  The  holiness  and  justice  and  good- 
ness of  the  law  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  it  slays 
every  sinner  with  whom  it  comes  in  contact.  This 
it  must  do,  else  it  would  be  neither  holy  nor  just 
nor  good.  The  law  of  Sinai  has  been  described  by 
some  one  as  "the  concept  of  the  mind  of  God  as 
to  what  a  man  ought  to  be,"  and  it  has  its  penalty : 
"The  soul  that  sinneth  it  shall  die."  So  then,  if 
a  soul  under  law  sins  and.  dies  not,  that  is  indu- 
bitable proof  that  the  law  is  unholy  and  unjust 
and  evil.  A  holy  law  must  of  necessity  impose 
and  enforce  its  penalty.  This  explains  the  con- 
nection between  verses  11  and  12:  "For  sin 
seized  the  advantage,  and  by  means  of  the  com- 
mandment it  completely  deceived  me,  and  also 
put  me  to  death.  So  that  the  law  itself  is  holy, 
and  the  commandment  is  holy,  just  and  good" 
(Weymouth). 

(9)  "Was  then  that  which  is  good  made 
death  unto  me?"  (13).  Rather,  "Did  then  that 
which  is  good  become  death  unto  me?"  (R.  V.). 
This  question  logically  grows  out  of  what  has 
gone  before  it.  Is  it  then  possible  that  the  law, 
being  holy  and  just  and  good,  could  become  death 
to  a  man? 

(10)  "God  forbid"  (13).  In  the  last  analysis, 
it  was  not  the  law  that  put  Saul  to  death,  but  sin, 
by  means  of  the  law.  What  an  awful  thing  sin  is, 
that  by  the  holy  and  just  law  of  God  it  can  bring 


90  SIMPLH  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

death  to  God's  creatures !  Surely,  by  this  means, 
sin  does  in  reality  ^'appear  sin,  working  death  in 
me  by  that  which  is  good ;  that  sin  by  the  com- 
mandment might  become  exceeding  sinful."  "Far 
be  that  from  me.  But  I  say  that  sin  wrought 
this;  that  so  it  might  be  made  manifest  as  sin, 
in  working  death  to  me  through  the  knowledge 
of  good ;  that  sin  might  become  beyond  measure 
sinful,  by  the  commandment"  (Conybeare  and 
Howson).  "The  misuse  and  perversion  of  good 
is  one  of  the  tests  whereby  the  energy  of  evil  is 
detected,  so  that  sin  by  its  perversion  of  the  good 
commandment  into  a  cause  of  death  was  shown 
in  its  real  character  as  sin"  (Dean  Alford).  Says 
Dr.  Stifler: 

"This  assertion  about  the  goodness  or  beneficence  of 
the  law  starts  an  acute  objection:  'Was  then  that  which 
is  good  made  death  unto  me?'  Can  wholesome  bread 
prove  poison  to  the  hungry  man  who  eats  it?  Does 
fresh,  pure  water  start  a  fever  instead  of  allaying  thirst? 
How  can  that  which  is  admitted  to  be  'good,'  the  law, 
prove  to  be  'death  to  me?'  This  subtle  objection  is  not 
only  answered,  but  turned  into  an  argument.  It  was 
not  the  law  that  brought  death,  'but  sin.'  And  sin 
wrought  death,  'that  (in  the  purpose  of  God  in  giving 
the  law)  it  might  appear  sin  (inasmuch  as  it,  sin,  worked 
death  in  me  by  that  which  is  good).'  How  desperate  the 
disease  that  only  grows  worse  under  the  appropriate 
remedy  to  heal  it !  But  God  had  an  additional  purpose 
in  giving  the  holy  law  to  sinful  man,  viz  :  'that  (in  order 
that)  sin  by  the  commandment  might  become  exceeding 
sinful.'  The  coward  is  not  known  until  he  hears  the 
command  to  march  against  the  foe." 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OP  GOD.  91 

3.  "But  I  see  another  law, bringing  me 

into  captivity"  (14-25).  This  wail  of  the  23d 
verse  is  the  burden  of  the  closing  paragraph  of 
the  chapter,  which  is  a  demonstration  of  the 
proposition  that  the  law  of  Judaism  could  not  de- 
liver from  the  flesh. 

( 1 )  "The  law  is  spiritual :  but  I  am  carnal" 
(14).  The  apostle  has  been  thinking  of  himself, 
up  to  this  point  in  the  chapter,  as  in  the  days  be- 
fore he  was  born  again,  but  the  struggle  he  now 
proceeds  to  describe  is  not  that  of  an  unregen- 
erate  man  trying  to  save  himself,  but  rather  of  a 
regenerate  man  trying  to  be  good.  It  is  the  con- 
flict between  the  old  nature  and  the  new,  sub- 
sisting together  in  the  believer.  The  new  nature 
cannot  sin,  while  the  old  nature  can  do  nothing 
else.  The  newly  regenerate  man,  before  he  learns 
the  better  way,  is  apt  to  seek  victory  over  the  old 
nature  by  means  of  his  own  efforts.  The  result 
of  such  efforts  is  always  failure,  and  it  takes  much 
bitter  experience  to  teach  the  believer  how  help- 
less he  is.  It  is  natural  for  the  human  heart  to 
put  itself  under  law,  and  to  seek  to  perfect  itself 
by  means  of  law-works.  By  this  closing  para- 
graph of  chapter  7,  we  are  to  learn  that,  as  the 
law  was  unable  to  justify  the  sinner  and  make 
him  a  child  of  God,  so  it  is  equally  unable  to 
sanctify  the  saint  as  to  his  walk.  The  way  of 
victory  is  indicated  in  the  8th  chapter. 

(2)  "Sold  under  sin"  (14).  This  expression 
describes  the  condition  of  the  carnal  man.  He 
is  a  slave  sold  into  the  captivity  of  sin.    And  let 


92  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

us  remember  that  the  carnal  man  here  is  not  an 
unsaved  man.  He  has  been  saved  from  the  pen- 
alty of  sin,  but  he  has  not  yet  learned  the  way  of 
dehverance  from  the  power  of  sin.  He  still  looks 
to  the  law  for  liberty,  whereas  the  law  can  bring 
him  only  bondage.  He  is  still  a  sinful  man, 
though  saved,  and  being  a  sinful  man  and  putting 
himself  under  law,  there  can  be  but  one  result, 
he  at  once  finds  himself  in  a  condition  of  slavery. 
**For  as  many  as  are  of  the  works  of  the  law  are 
under  the  curse :  for  it  is  written,  Cursed  is  every 
one  that  continueth  not  in  all  things  which  are 
written  in  the  book  of  the  law  to  do  them"  (Gal. 
3 :  lo).  It  is  not  enough  to  approximate  the  law, 
and  to  do  the  best  you  can  to  keep  it.  Whoever 
fails,  even  in  one  point,  is  guilty  of  all  (Jas.  2: 
10).  It  follows,  then,  that  as  none  of  us  has 
reached  perfection  and  as  the  law  tolerates  no 
imperfection,  therefore  every  one  who  puts  him- 
self under  the  law  thereby  brings  upon  himself 
the  curse  of  the  law.  It  is  often  said  that,  while 
we  are  free  from  the  law  as  a  means  of  life,  we 
are  under  it  as  a  rule  of  life;  but  there  is  no 
Scripture  for  this;  indeed,  there  is  much  of 
Scripture  against  it.  The  Christian  is  promised 
that  sin  shall  not  have  dominion  over  him  just 
because  he  is  not  under  law,  but  under  grace 
(Rom.  6 :  14).  The  very  moment  he  is  put  under 
the  law  sin  does  have  dominion  over  him,  and  he 
soon  discovers  that  the  sting  of  death  is  sin,  and 
the  strength  of  sin  is  the  law,  'for,  while  the  law  is 
holy,  he  is  carnal,  sold  under  sin. 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  93 

(3)  "For  that  which  I  do  I  allow  not;  for 
what  I  would,  that  do  I  not ;  but  what  I  hate, 
that  do  I"  (15).  The  two  I's  here,  contending 
with  each  other,  represent  the  old  nature  in  Paul 
and  the  new.  For  convenience  sake,  we  might  say 
the  struggle  here  is  between  Saul  of  Tarsus  and 
Paul  the  apostle,  abiding  together  in  one  body. 
The  change  in  the  tense  from  past  to  present 
in  this  section,  beginning  with  verse  14,  will  be 
observed.  ''Hitherto,"  says  Dean  Alford,  "the 
passage  has  been  historical:  now  the  apostle 
passes  to  the  present  time,  keeping  hold  yet  of 
the  carnal  self  of  former  days,  whose  remnants 
are  still  energizing  in  the  renewed  man." 

(4)  "I  consent  unto  the  law  that  it  is  good" 
(16).  This  is  shown,  as  the  apostle  points  out, 
by  the  fact  that  he  does  not  himself  approve  of  the 
evil  things  he  is  doing. 

(5)  "It  is  no  more  I  that  do  it,  but  sin  that 
dwelleth  in  me"  (17).  "His  failure  to  lead  a 
good  life  cannot  be  ascribed  to  his  wrong  at- 
titude toward  the  law ;  that  failure  must  be  as- 
cribed to  indwelling  sin.  The  T  is  just  himself, 
body,  soul,  and  spirit,  that  have  been  seized  upon 
by  the  alien  master  which  he  calls  sin"  (Stifler). 

(6)  "For  I  know  that  in  me  (that  is,  in  my 
flesh)  dwelleth  no  good  thing"  (18).  This  is 
shown  from  the  fact,  that  while  he  is  able  to  will 
that  which  is  good,  he  is  powerless  to  perform  it. 
The  argument  grows  pathetic,  and  he  again 
reaches  the  same  conclusion  in  verse  20  as  in 


94  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

verse  17:  "It  is  no  more  I  that  do  it,  but  sin  that 
dwelleth  in  me." 

(7)  "I  find  then  a  law"  (21).  By  this  he  re- 
fers to  a  principle  he  has  discovered  in  his  Hfe, 
namely,  that  when  he  would  do  good,  evil  is  pres- 
ent with  him.  He  delights  in  the  law  of  God 
after  the  inward  man,  and  this  is  a  proof  that  he 
is  a  converted  man  and  is  relating  his  experience 
as  such.  But  he  sees  another  law  in  his  members, 
warring  against  the  law  of  his  mind,  and  bringing 
him  into  captivity  to  sin  which  is  in  his  members 
(22,  23).  Four  laws  are  in  view  in  this  passage : 
(i)  the  law  of  God;  (2)  the  law  of  Paul's  mind, 
consenting  to  the  law  of  God;  (3)  the  law  of 
sin,  or  the  tendency  to  evil  in  his  own  members ; 
and  (4)  the  law,  or  principle,  that  this  law  of  sin 
is  stronger  in  him  than  the  law  of  his  mind.  It 
was  a  great  discovery  when  he  learned  that  he 
was  utterly  helpless  in  this  unequal  struggle,  and 
cried  out  for  deliverance. 

(8)  "O  wretched  man  that  I  am!  who  shall 
deliver  me  from  the  body  of  this  death?"  (24). 
He  is  evidently  crying  out  against  his  own  physi- 
cal body  which  is  the  instrument  whereby  he  is 
led  captive  to  the  law  of  sin  and  death.  He 
called  it  a  body  of  sin  in  chapter  6 : 6,  and  now 
he  calls  it  a  body  of  death,  for  it  is  the  seat  of 
sin  and  death,  and  he  had  not  yet  discovered  the 
way  of  deliverance  from  the  power  of  sin  and 
death. 

(9)  "I  thank  God  through  Jesus  Christ  our 
Lord"   (25).     This  is  the  ready  answer  to  the 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  95 

despairing  question  jitst  preceding  it,  and  is  a 
proof  that,  when  Paul  is  writing  the  words,  he  is 
looking  back  to  a  past  experience  through  which 
he  has  come.  Dean  Alford  says :  "This  excla- 
mation and  thanksgiving  more  than  all  convince 
me,  that  St.  Paul  speaks  of  none  other  than  him- 
self, and  carries  out  as  far  as  possible  the 
misery  of  the  conflict  with  sin  in  his  members, 
on  purpose  to  bring  in  the  glorious  deliverance 
which  follows. — Compare  i  Cor.  15:56,  57, 
where  a  very  similar  thanksgiving  occurs." 

(10)  "So  then  with  the  mind  I  myself  serve 
the  law  of  God;  but  with  the  flesh  the  law  of 
sin"  (25).  This  is  a  recapitulation  of  the  whole 
paragraph.  The  deliverance  out  of  the  hopeless 
warfare  indicated  in  that  paragraph  is  brought 
into  full  light  in  the  8th  chapter.  The  contrast 
between  the  victory  life  of  chapter  8  and  the  life 
of  defeat  of  chapter  7  is  beautifully  set  forth  by 
Leighton  in  a  sermon  on  Rom.  8 :  35 :  "Is  this  he 
that  so  lately  cried  out,  O  wretched  man  that  T 
am!  who  shall  deliver  me?  that  now  triumphs ? 
O  happy  man !  who  shall  separate  us  from  the 
love  of  Christ?  Yes,  it  is  the  same.  Pained  then 
with  the  thoughts  of  that  miserable  conjunction 
with  the  body  of  death,  and  so  crying  out  who 
shall  deliver,  now  he  hath  found  a  Deliverer  to 
do  that  for  him,  to  whom  he  is  forever  united. 
So  vast  a  difference  is  there  between  a  Christian 
taken  in  himself  and  in  Christ !" 


o6  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

VI.  Gospel-Righteousness  Provides  for  a 
Holy  Liee  by  Means  oe  the  Holy 
Spirit  Indwelling  the  Believer  (ch.  8). 

Spener,  an  old  German  commentator,  once  said 
that,  "If  Holy  Scripture  was  a  ring,  and  the 
epistle  to  the  Romans  its  precious  stone,  chapter 
8  would  be  the  sparkUng  point  of  the  jewel." 
Everybody  agrees  that  this  chapter  is  one  of  the 
loftiest  mountain  peaks  in  the  whole  realm  of 
revealed  truth.  Here  we  find  the  climax  of  the 
argument  begun  at  chapter  3:21  on  the  great 
subject  of  gospel-righteousness.  This  is  the 
second  main  division  of  the  epistle.  That  gospel- 
righteousness  is  by  faith  was  shown  in  3:21-31. 
That  it  is  not  contrary  to  the  Old  Testament 
Scriptures  we  saw  in  chapter  4.  The  5th  chapter 
teaches  that  by  gospel-righteousness  the  believer 
is  kept  in  eternal  security.  The  6th  chapter  shows 
that  a  sinful  life  is  not  produced  nor  encouraged 
by  the  gospel,  but  that,  on  the  contrary,  the  be- 
liever, made  eternally  safe,  has  partaken  of  the 
divine  nature  and  therefore  of  the  divine  hatred 
for  sin.  In  the  7th  chapter,  the  believer's  sancti- 
fication  by  means  of  law  is  shown  to  be  im- 
possible, and  now  in  our  8th  chapter,  we  are  to 
learn  that  through  the  indwelling  Spirit  of  God 
the  believer  is  led  into  a  godly  life.  The  chapter 
may  be  analyzed  as  follows :  ( i )  The  indwelling 
Holy  Spirit  as  the  Spirit  of  power  (vs.  i-ii)  ; 
(2)  The  indwelling  Holy  Spirit  as  the  Spirit  of 
adoption  (vs.  12-17)  ;    (3)  '^^^  indwelling  Holy 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  97 

Spirit  as  the  Spirit  of  hope  (vs.  18-27)  5  (4) 
The  Christian's  assurance  (vs.  28-39). 

I.  "The  law  of  the  Spirit  of  life hath 

made  me  free"  (i-ii).  It  is  a  wonderful  thing 
for  the  believer  to  discover  the  indwelling  Holy 
Spirit  as  the  Spirit  of  Hfe  and  power.  But  first 
he  must  know  his  safety  from  wrath  or  con- 
demnation : 

(i)  "There  is  therefore  now  no  condem- 
nation to  them  which  are  in  Christ  Jesus"  ( i ) . 
The  first  verse  stops  with  this  wonderful  state- 
ment, the  remainder  of  the  verse,  as  found  in  the 
King  James  Version,  being,  as  all  commentators 
agree,  an  unwarranted  interpolation.  The  propo- 
sition squarely  set  forth,  then,  is  that,  the  born 
again  one  is  absolutely  and  for  ever  free  from 
condemnation.  This  is  what  the  gospel  has  done 
for  him.  It  has  bestowed  upon  him  a  righteous- 
ness that  nothing  can  mar  nor  soil  in  the  slightest 
degree;  even  the  righteousness  of  God,  that  is 
God's  own  righteousness.  This  righteousness  is 
imputed  unto  him  at  the  beginning,  and  it  does 
not  vary  afterward  with  his  varying  states  and 
conditions,  frames  and  feelings.  It  is  his  stand- 
ing in  Christ.  This  imputation  is  followed  by 
the  actual  impartation  of  God's  righteousness, 
but  the  process  of  impartation  is  gradual  and  con- 
tinues to  the  end  of  earthly  life,  while  imputation 
is  not  a  process,  but  one  definite  act  of  God.  Dr. 
Scofield's  definition  of  imputation  is:  "(i)  Im- 
putation is  the  act  of  God  whereby  He  accounts 
righteousness  to  the  believer  in  Jesus  Christ.    (2) 


98  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Because  of  a  believer's  faith  in  Jesus,  God  will 
not  impute  sin  against ,  him."  .  And  the  same 
writer  defines  justification  as  "the  act  of  God 
whereby  He  declares  righteous  one  who  believes 
on  Jesus  Christ."  "The  connection  by  the  word 
'therefore,'  "  says  Dr.  Stifler,  "is  with  the  first 
clause  of  the  preceding  verse,  and  through  it  with 
that  to  which  the  clause  refers.  'Now' — as  the 
argument  at  present  stands.  The  'no'  is  emphatic 
— no  condemnation  from  the  law,  and  none  on 
account  of  inherent  sinfulness ;  none  from  any 
source  nor  for  any  cause.  Those  who  make  the 
'now'  temporal  miss  the  shining  point  that  'no 
condemnation'  means  none  possible,  none  forever. 
This  happy  condition  belongs  only  to  those  in 
Christ  Jesus.  The  rest  of  the  verse  is  not  genu- 
ine and  is  omitted  by  all  modern  editors  of  the 
text." 

(2)  "For  the  law  of  the  Spirit  of  life  in 
Christ  Jesus  made  me  free  from  the  law  of  sin 
and  of  death"  {2,  R.  V.).  The  preposition  "of" 
is  repeated  in  the  original  and  by  the  Revisers. 
The  statement  is,  that  by  the  higher  and  more 
powerful  law  of  the  Spirit  of  life,  the  believer  is 
made  free  from  two  other  laws,  namely,  the  law 
of  sin  and  the  law  of  death.  The  law  of  sin  is 
defined  in  the  preceding  chapter  (7:  21-23).  ^^^ 
believer,  in  the  7th  chapter,  seeking  to  live  a 
righteous  life  by  obedience  to  law,  found  another 
law  in  his  members,  that  is,  within  himself,  war- 
ring against  the  law  of  his  mind  and  bringing 
him  into  captivity  under  the  law  of  sin  in  his 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  99 

members.  In  the  8th  chapter,  deliverance  has 
come,  for  he  has  discovered  that  the  Holy  Spirit 
is  indwelling  him,  and  that  by  the  indwelling 
Spirit  he  may  have  victory  over  the  law  of  sin 
which  has  heretofore  dragged  him  down. 

And  not  only  so,  but  he  is  delivered  also  from 
the  law  of  death.  And  the  law  of  death  is  also 
defined  in  the  7th  chapter,  verses  7-1 1.  The  be- 
liever had  not  known  sin  except  through  the  law, 
that  is,  the  law  of  Sinai.  He  had  not  known 
coveting  until  he  heard  the  law  saying,  ''Thou 
shalt  not  covet."  And  sin,  finding  occasion, 
wrought  in  him,  through  the  commandment,  all 
manner  of  coveting.  Apart  from  the  law  sin  was 
dead,  and  apart  from  the  law  Saul  of  Tarsus  had 
once  considered  himself  alive,  but  when  the  com- 
mandment came,  sin  revived,  and  he  died;  and 
the  commandment,  which  was  unto  life,  he  found 
to  be  unto  death,  for  sin,  finding  occasion  through 
the  commandment,  beguiled  him  and  through  it 
slew  him.  So  the  law  of  Moses,  though  in  itself 
spiritual,  holy,  righteous  and  good,  became  unto 
him  a  law  of  death.  It  was  indeed  unto  Israel  a 
yoke  which  they  were  not  able  to  bear  (Ac.  15: 
10).  In  our  present  chapter,  the  believer  is  seen 
as  yielding  himself  to  the  indwelling  Spirit  of 
God,  Who,  by  divine  power,  frees  him  from  this 
law  of  death. 

(3)  "For  what  the  law  could  not  do"  (3,  4). 
The  law  was  unable  to  produce  in  man  the  obedi- 
ence it  demanded.  It  was  weak  through  the 
flesh,  for  how  could  sinful  flesh  obey  a  holy  law  ? 


TOO  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Therefore,  what  the  law  could  not  do,  God  did; 
and  this  He  did  by  sending  His  own  Son  in  the 
likeness  of  sinful  flesh  and  as  a  sin  offering.  Men 
had  all  gone  astray ;  they  had  turned  each  one  to 
his  own  way,  and  the  Lord  caused  to  meet  upon 
His  devoted  Son  the  iniquity  of  them  all  (Isa.  53  : 
6).  And  then  came  the  condemnation.  Sin  in 
the  flesh,  all  centering  in  the  Lamb  of  God  on 
the  tree,  was  put  to  death,  in  order  that  the 
righteous  requirement  of  the  law  might  be  ful- 
filled in  the  believer.  The  believer  is  defined  in 
the  final  clause  of  the  fourth  verse  as  one  who 
walks  not  according  to  the  flesh,  but  according  to 
the  Spirit.  To  walk  according  to  the  flesh,  in  the 
meaning  of  this  passage,  is  to  reject  the  gift  of 
gospel-righteousness  in  Christ,  and  to  seek  to 
establish  one's  own  righteousness  by  law-works. 
This  is  the  natural  thing  and  is  what  the  flesh  is 
ever  prone  to  try.  On  the  other  hand,  to  walk 
according  to  the  Spirit  is  to  receive  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ  as  He  is  revealed  by  the  Spirit. 

(4)  "For  they  that  are  after  the  flesh  do 
mind  the  things  of  the  flesh;  but  they  that 
are  after  the  Spirit  the  things  of  the  Spirit" 
(5).  This  section  (vs.  5-8)  draws  a  contrast  be- 
tween the  unregenerate  and  the  regenerate,  and 
they  are  defined  as  those  who  are  after  the  flesh 
and  those  who  are  after  the  Spirit.  That  this 
is  the  correct  understanding  is  shown  from  the 
statement  of  the  9th  verse,  in  which  it  is  declared 
that  the  Christian  is  not  in  the  flesh  in  the  sense 
employed  here.     Rotherham's  translation  of  the 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.          loi 

passage  reads :  "For  they  who  according  to 
flesh  have  their  being  the  things  of  the  flesh  do 
prefer,  but  they  according  to  the  Spirit  the  things 
of  the  Spirit ;  for  what  is  preferred  by  the  flesh  is 
death,  whereas  what  is  preferred  by  the  Spirit 
is  life  and  peace ; — inasmuch  as  what  is  preferred 
by  the  flesh  is  hostile  towards  God,  for  unto  the 
law  of  God  it  doth  not  submit  itself,  neither  in 
fact  can  it, — they  moreover  who  in  flesh  have 
their  being  cannot  please  God."  Dr.  Moffatt  ren- 
ders the  passage  thus:  "For  those  who  fol- 
low the  flesh  have  their  interests  in  the  flesh,  and 
those  who  follow  the  Spirit  have  their  interests  in 
the  Spirit.  The  interests  of  the  flesh  mean  death, 
the  interests  of  the  Spirit  mean  life  and  peace. 
For  the  interests  of  the  flesh  are  hostile  to  God ; 
they  do  not  yield  to  the  law  of  God  (indeed  they 
cannot) .  Those  who  are  in  the  flesh  cannot  satis- 
fy God." 

The  emphatic  statement  at  the  close  of  the 
passage  is  of  great  importance.  The  words  "so 
then,"  introducing  the  8th  verse,  in  the  King 
James  Version,  are  incorrect.  It  ought  to  read 
simply:  "And  they  that  are  in  the  flesh  cannot 
please  God."  The  assertion  is  not  a  deduction 
from  the  preceding  verses,  but  a  solemn  declara- 
tion of  God's  attitude  toward  those  out  of  Christ. 
They  are  without  faith,  and  "without  faith  it  is  im- 
possible to  please  Him"  (Heb.  ii :  6).  God  deals 
with  men  through  Christ,  and  only  through  Christ. 
Whosoever  will  may  come,  but  all  who  come 
must  approach  unto  God  through  Him  Who  said, 


i62  SIMPLE  STUDIBS  IN  ROMANS. 

"I  am  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life ;  no  man 
cometh  unto  the  Father,  but  by  Me"  ( Jno.  14 :  6). 
Coming  through  Him,  all  may  come  and  welcome, 
but  those  who  would  climb  up  some  other  way 
are  thieves  and  robbers  (Jno.  10:1),  and  they 
must  always  fail  of  access  to  the  Father.  "He 
that  despised  Moses'  law  died  without  mercy 
under  two  or  three  witnesses :  of  how  much 
sorer  punishment,  suppose  ye,  shall  he  be  thought 
worthy,  who  hath  trodden  under  foot  the  Son  of 
God,  and  hath  counted  the  blood  of  the  covenant, 
wherewith  he  was  sanctified,  an  unholy  thing, 
and  hath  done  despite  unto  the  Spirit  of  grace? 
For  we  know  Him  that  hath  said.  Vengeance  be- 
longeth  unto  Me,  I  will  recompense,  saith  the 
Lord.  And  again,  The  Lord  shall  judge  His 
people.  It  is  a  fearful  thing  to  fall  into  the  hands 
of  the  living  God"  (Heb.  10:28-31). 

Let  it  be  understood,  then,  before  we  go  for- 
ward in  tliis  chapter,  that  the  flesh,  the  natural 
man,  is  under  God's  condemnation,  the  wrath  of 
God  abideth  upon  him.  Apart  from  Christ  is  no 
salvation  and  no  means  of  approach  to  God. 
"They  that  are  in  the  flesh  cannot  please  God." 
There  may  be  those  in  the  flesh,  as  there  are,  and 
many  of  them,  who  can  please  men,  and  who  are 
pleased  with  themselves,  but  God  is  not  pleased 
with  them ;  no  matter  what  they  do,  and  no  mat- 
ter how  much  their  fellowmen  may  commend 
them  for  what  they  do,  God  is  not  pleased.  How 
could  He  be  pleased  with  men  who  tread  under 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.         103 

foot  His  Son  and  repudiate  the  blood  of  the  ever- 
lasting covenant  ? 

(5)  "But  ye  are  not  in  the  flesh,  but  in  the 
Spirit,  if  so  be  that  the  Spirit  of  God  dwell  in 
you"  (9).  In  this  section  (vs.  9-1 1),  four  phras- 
es are  employed,  all  meaning  the  same  thing  and 
haying  reference  to  the  indwelling  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  in  the  believer.  They  are:  "the  Spirit  of 
God"  (v.  9),  ''the  Spirit  of  Christ"  (v.  9), 
"Christ"  (v.  10),  and  "the  Spirit  of  Him  that 
raised  up  Jesus  from  the  dead"  (v.  11).  The 
doctrine  of  the  indwelling  Spirit  is  found  in  i 
Cor.  6:  19,  20:  "Know  ye  not  that  your  body 
is  a  temple  of  the  Holy  Spirit  Which  is  in  you, 
Which  ye  have  from  God?  and  ye  are  not  your 
own;  for  ye  were  bought  with  a  price:  glorify 
God  therefore  in  your  body"  (R.  V.).  The  Holy 
Spirit  does  not  enter  the  believer  at  some  time 
subsequent  to  his  regeneration,  but  the  moment  he 
believes  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  is  born 
again  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  he  is  in- 
dwelt by  that  Holy  Spirit,  who  thereafter  abides 
in  him  continually.  And  in  the  paragraph  before 
us  in  our  present  study,  we  are  assured  that,  if 
the  Spirit  of  God  is  dwelling  in  us,  we  are  not  in 
the  flesh,  according  to  God's  reckoning;  and  if, 
oh  the  other  hand,  the  Spirit  of  Christ,  that  is, 
the  Holy  Spirit,  is  not  indwelling  us,  we  are  none 
of  His,  that  is,  we  are  not  Christians  at  all,  we 
are  not  born  again,  we  are  not  children  of  God. 
In  the  second  place,  if  Christ  be  in  us,  that  is, 
if  we  are  children  of  God  and  have  the  Holy 


104  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Spirit  indwelling  us,  then,  though  the  body  is 
still  counted  a  dead  thing  because  of  sin,  the 
spirit  is  life  because  of  righteousness.  And, 
thirdly,  the  assurance  is  given  us  that  even  these 
mortal  bodies,  which  have  not  yet  entered  into 
the  fulness  of  the  inheritance  of  sonship,  will  be 
revivified  by  the  indwelling  Spirit. 

These  statements  of  verses  lo  and  ii  may  re> 
quire  further  examination,  though  the  doctrine 
intimated  in  them  will  be  developed  as  we  go  on 
with  the  chapter.  The  meaning  of  the  9th  verse 
is  that,  in  the  case  of  every  one  in  whom  Christ  is 
dwelling,  that  is,  of  every  Christian,  the  body, 
according  to  God's  reckoning,  is  dead  because  of 
sin,  and  is  yet  to  be  redeemed  from  death  (com- 
pare v.  23)  ;  and  meanwhile,  the  spirit,  that  is, 
the  saint's  own  personal  spirit,  is  life  because  of 
righteousness.  The  life  of  Christ  is  imparted  to 
the  believer's  spirit  on  the  ground  of  gospel- 
righteousness,  and  it  will  never  again  be  made 
subject  to  death.  The  body,  on  the  other  hand,  is 
not  yet  redeemed  from  death.  The  redemption 
price  has  been  paid  even  for  the  body,  but  the  re- 
demption itself  has  not  yet  reached  the  body,  and 
will  not  until  our  Lord  catches  us  up  to  Himself 
at  the  rapture  of  the  church.  For  this  present 
time  the  bodies  of  Christians  are  just  as  truly 
bodies  of  death  as  the  bodies  of  unbelievers. 
Christians  grow  sick  and  die  just  like  other  peo- 
ple, and  this  will  go  on  until  "the  adoption,  to 
wit,  the  redemption  of  our  body,"  is  fully  ac- 
complished at  the  first  resurrection.    But,  in  the 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  105 

meantime,  while  saints  equally  with  sinners  are 
subject  to  bodily  death,  they  are  not  subject  to 
spiritual  death.  As  to  their  spirits,  they  have  all 
entered  into  eternal  life,  and  death  hath  no  more 
dominion  over  them.  And  this  is  all  "because  of 
righteousness,"  the  righteousness  wrought  out 
for  us  by  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  on  the  cross  of 
Calvary.    He  is  "the  Lord,  our  Righteousness." 

The  believer,  having  the  Holy  Spirit  indwelling 
him,  may  find  in  the  fact  of  that  indwelling  a 
pledge  and  guaranty  of  the  coming  redemption 
of  His  body,  for  "if  the  Spirit  of  Him  that 
raised  up  Jesus  from  the  dead  dwell  in  you,  He 
that  raised  up  Christ  from  the  dead  shall  also 
quicken  (that  is,  make  alive)  your  mortal  bodies 
by  His  Spirit  that  dwelleth  in  you"(ii).  The 
same  argument  is  found  in  the  words  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  in  Jno.  14:  1-3:  "Ye  beHeve  in  God,  be- 
lieve also  in  me H  I  go  and  prepare  a  place 

for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and  receive  you  unto 
myself."  And  the  same  argument  is  found  again 
in  I  Thes.  4:14:  "If  we  beHeve  that  Jesus  died 
and  rose  again,  even  so  them  also  which  sleep  in 
Jesus  will  God  bring  with  Him." 

2.  "Ye  have  received  the  Spirit  of  adoption" 
(12-17).  This  paragraph  discusses  our  new  re- 
lationship in  the  family  of  God : 

( I )  "Therefore,  brethren,  we  are  debtors,  not 
to  the  flesh,  to  live  after  the  flesh"  (12).  The 
two  verses  following  (13  and  14)  should  be  read 
as  a  parenthetical  statement  in  connection  with 
the  1 2th  verse  :    ("For  if  ye  live  according  to  the 


io6  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

flesh  ye  are  to  die.  But  if  by  the  Spirit  ye  mortify 
the  practices  of  the  body  ye  will  live,  for  they 
who  are  led  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  they  are  the 
sons  of  God")  (Murdoch's  translation).  Which 
is  to  say  that,  in  the  sense  of  this  passage,  a  Chris- 
tian is  one  who  lives  according  to  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  that  any  one  who  lives  according  to  the  flesh 
is  not  a  Christian,  he  is  not  a  son  of  God.  Sons 
of  God  are  those  who  are  led  by  the  Spirit  of 
God,  and  none  others  are  children  of  God.  This 
is  the  argument  throughout  the  chapter  from  the 
beginning  (compare  vs.  5-8). 

The  Christian  incentive  is  set  forth  here.  We 
are  debtors,  we  have  a  debt  and  our  debt  is  not  to 
the  flesh  to  live  according  to  it.  We  are  warned 
against  the  deeds  of  the  body  in  view  of  the  fact 
that  the  body  is  still  a  dead  thing  in  God's  sight — 
"our  body  is  a  corpse"  (Bengel).  The  Christian's 
aim  should  always  be  to  make  the  Holy  Spirit 
the  dominant  power  in  his  life. 

(2)  "Ye  have  received  the  Spirit  of  adop- 
tion" (15).  Adoption,  in  the  Scriptures,  means 
literally,  placing  as  a  son.  Under  the  old  Roman 
law,  when  a*  son  reached  the  age  of  maturity  he 
was  publicly  inducted  into  partnership  with  his 
father,  and  recognized  as  his  heir  and  successor, 
and  this  public  function  was  designated  by  the 
word  "adoption,"  or  "son-placing."  Under  the 
Old  Testament,  Israel's  relation  was  not  that  of 
full  sonship,  but,  under  the  new  covenant,  the 
believer  at  his  new  birth  is  at  once  given  the 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.         107 

place  of  full-grown  sonship.  This  is  his  position 
as  the  gift  of  God's  grace,  and  when  the  Holy 
Spirit  thereupon  takes  up  His  abode  in  the  be- 
liever's body,  He  enters  as  the  Spirit  of  adoption, 
giving  the  believer  deliverance  from  bondage  and 
fear,  and  causing  him  to  cry,  "Abba,  Father." 
The  expression  here  is,  "Abba,  the  Pater,"  Abba 
being  the  Hebrew  and  Chaldean  word  for  father, 
and  Pater  the  Greek  form  of  the  same  word.  As 
Paul  uses  it  here,  the  expression  is  a  repetition 
of  the  words  used  by  the  Lord  Jesus  in  Mk.  14: 
36,  and  they  are  found  again,  in  much  the  same 
connection  as  here,  in  Gal.  4 : 6. 

(3)  "The  Spirit  Himself  beareth  witness  with 
our  spirit,  that  we  are  children  of  God"  (16). 
This  great  fact  of  sonship  is  the  thing  for  which 
justification  through  faith  paved  the  way.  Sal- 
vation does  not,  by  any  means,  stop  with  justi- 
fication. God's  purpose  in  delivering  us  from 
sin  was  that  He  might  make  us  His  sons.  This 
He  could  not  righteously  do  until  our  sins  were 
righteously  disposed  of,  but  the  blood  having 
been  shed  which  cleanseth  us  from  all  sin,  He 
has  been  enabled  to  exercise  His  divine  power 
in  our  regeneration,  and  then  to  open  wide  His 
arms  of  love  and  receive  us  unto  Himself  as  His 
"dear  children"  (Eph.  5:1). 

(4)  "And  if  children,  then  heirs"  (17). 
Think  of  it,  God's  heirs  and  Christ's  co-heirs! 
Not  joint-heirs  in  the  sense  of  dividing  with  Him 
the  inheritance,  but  rather,  in  the  sense  of  enter- 
ing together  with  Him  into  the  whole  inheritance. 


io8  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

(5)  "If  SO  be  that  we  suffer  with  Him,  that 
we  may  be  also  glorified  together"  (17).  The 
"if"  here  is  not  conditional;  it  is  rather  to  be 
read,  "since  indeed  we  suffer  with  Him,"  for 
this  is  the  common  lot  of  Christians.  It  is  an- 
other descriptive  phrase  to  define  what  a  Chris- 
tion  is.  A  Christian  is  one  who  suffers  with 
Christ.  "For  even  hereunto  were  ye  called"  (i 
Pet.  2:21),  and  "unto  you  it  is  given  in  the  be- 
half of  Christ,  not  only  to  believe  on  Him,  but 
also  to  suffer  for  His  sake"  (Phil.  1 129).  The 
apostle  does  not  here  enter  into  discussion  as  to 
the  degrees  of  suffering  through  which  Chris- 
tians may  pass.  It  is  doubtless  true  that  some 
Christians  know  more  of  the  ministry  of  suffer- 
ing than  others,  but  it  is  also  true  that  to  every 
child  of  God  there  is  appointed  a  ministry  of 
suffering  which  he  cannot  fully  escape,  even  if  he 
would.  "Yea,  and  all  that  will  live  godly  in 
Christ  Jesus  shall  suffer  persecution"  (2  Tim.  3 : 
12).  "It  is  almost  an  axiom  of  the  gospel," 
says  Dr.  Stifler,  "that  the  path  to  glory  is  the 
path  of  pain  (Mk.  10:38;  Phil.  2:9).  There- 
fore the  intelligent  believer  does  not  hesitate  to 
undergo  sorrow  in  his  service  to  Christ;  he 
rather  covets  it  in  order  that  he  may  be  glorified 
with  Him ;  for  the  joint  heirs  are  those  who  suf- 
fer that  they  may  be  glorified.  Suffering  is  the 
seed  that  ripens  in  fruit  of  glory." 

3.  "In  hope  were  we  saved"  (18-27).  The 
Holy   Spirit   indwelling   God's   children   as   the 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  109 

Spirit  of  hope,  leads  them  to  look  forward  into 
the  future,  *'for  that  blessed  hope"  of  their  Lord's 
return : 

( 1 )  "For  I  reckon  that  the  sufferings  of  this 
present  time  are  not  worthy  to  be  compared 
with  the  glory  which  shall  be  revealed  to  us- 
ward"  (18).  The  "in  us"  of  the  King  James 
Version  is  incorrect.  The  glory  has  already  been 
revealed  in  us  in  great  measure,  but  there  is  a 
glory  to  be  revealed  toward  us  when  our  Lord 
shall  come  again.  In  i  Pet.  i :  11  and  elsewhere, 
the  sufferings  of  Christ  are  linked  with  the  glory 
that  shall  follow,  and  our  sufferings  and  glory 
are  of  course  closely  identified  with  His.  When 
He  shall  appear,  or  be  manifested,  we  are  to  be 
manifested  with  Him  in  glory  (Col.  3:4).  Our 
manifestation  as  the  sons  of  God  shining  in  the 
glory  of  our  Father  is  dealt  with  in  the  passage 
before  us,  but  prior  to  our  manifestation  with  the 
Lord  Jesus,  when  He  shall  be  revealed  in  the 
clouds  of  heaven  with  power  and  great  glory, 
there  is  to  be  a  revelation  of  His  glory  unto,  or 
toward,  us.  We  are  to  see  Him  as  He  is  in  order 
that  we  may  become  like  Him  (i  Jno.  3:2,  3). 
And  this  glory  that  shall  be  revealed  toward  us 
is  so  great  that  the  present  sufferings,  however 
great  they  may  be,  are  not  worthy  to  be  com- 
pared with  the  coming  glory. 

(2)  "For  the  earnest  expectation  of  the 
creation  waiteth  for  the  revealing  of  the  sons  of 
God"  (19,  R,  v.).     The  material  world  itself  is 


no  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

pictured  here  as  upon  the  tiptoe  of  expectancy, 
so  great  is  the  glory  about  to  be  revealed,  when 
the  children  of  God  shall  be  manifested  in  His 
likeness. 

(3)  "For  the  creation  was  subjected  to  van- 
ity" (20,  21,  R.  v.).  Upon  this  complicated 
passage  we  quote  Dr.  Stifler  at  length : 

"As  God's  sons  look  with  longing  to  the  future,  first, 
because  their  present  condition  is  painful  and  is  not  the 
ideal  condition,  and,  secondly,  because  the  future  will 
bring  them  redemption,  just  so  the  creation,  personified 
all  through  this  passage,  looks  to  the  same  future,  first, 
because  it  is  now  under  the  curse,  and,  secondly,  in  the 
future,  in  the  glorification  of  the  faithful,  it  will  find 
deliverance.  The  20th  verse  gives  a  reason  for  the 
'earnest  expectation'  drawn  from  the  present  condition 
of  creation,  and  the  next  verse  a  reason  (when  we  read 
'because')  drawn  from  the  future.  'Was  made  subject 
to  vanity'  is  ambiguous.  Creation  was  not  made  so, 
for  originally  creation  was  'good,'  and  it  was  subjected 
to  vanity,  that  is,  to  attain  to  no  good  end  permanently. 
Any  good  that  comes  from  creation  must  be  evoked  by 
man's  hard  toil.  This  condition  did  not  come  about  by 
its  own  will  ('willingly'),  but  because  of  Him  (God) 
Who  subjected  it  to  vanity,  not  finally,  but  upon  a  basis 
of  some  provision  for  the  future,  called  'hope.'  This 
verse  clearly  implies  that  creation  ('all  nature')  is 
neither  in  its  original  condition  nor  in  its  final  condition. 
It  fell  when  man  fell  (Gen.  3:  17-19)  ;  it  shall  be  re- 
stored when  he  is,  and  shall  be  no  longer  subject  to 
vanity,  but  to  him  (Heb.  2:  5-9).  It  is  eagerly  awaiting 
the  revelation  of  God's  sons,  because  that  is  the  time 
when  it  'also  shall  be  delivered  from  the  bondage  of  cor- 
ruption (the  subjection,  v.  20)  into  the  liberty  of  the 
glory   ('glorious  Hberty'  is  wrong)    of  the  children  of 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  in 

God.'    The  creation  is  promised  the  liberty  of  the  glory, 
not  the  glory." 

(4)  "For  we  know  that  the  whole  creation 
groaneth"  (22,  23).  No  one  with  the  anointed 
eye  can  fail  to  discern  the  universal  sufferings  of 
"this  nether  world,"  and  the  Spirit  of  God  tells 
us  here  why  the  whole  creation  is  groaning  and 
travailing  in  pain.  This  reason  is  given  in  the 
23d  verse,  where  the  supplied  word  "they"  should 
read  "it,"  for  it  refers  to  "the  whole  creation"  of 
the  preceding  verse.  Not  only  it,  but  ourselves 
also,  though  we  have  the  firstfruits  of  salvation 
in  the  presence  of  the  indwelling  Spirit  of  God, 
groan  within  ourselves,  and  we  are  all  waiting 
for  the  adoption,  to  wit,  the  redemption  of  our 
body.  Christians  are  already  sons  of  God  in  the 
fullest  sense,  but  that  fact  has  not  yet  been  made 
manifest  to  the  world.  Adoption,  in  the  New 
Testament  sense,  is  already  ours  (Gal.  4:5; 
Eph.  1:5),  but  it  is  a  matter  of  faith  for  the 
present  time,  and  our  sonship  is  not  pubUcly  pro- 
claimed, so  to  speak,  and  will  not  be  until  the  glad 
day  of  redemption  to  which  this  passage  points. 
Then,  even  our  bodies,  these  bodies  of  our  hu- 
miliation, shall  be  transformed  into  the  likeness 
of  Christ's  glorious  body,  by  that  same  power  by 
which  He  is  able  also  to  subdue  all  things  unto 
Himself  (Phil.  3:21).  Our  bodies,  in  common 
with  the  material  creation  generally,  are  now 
suffering  in  the  bondage  of  corruption.  They 
are  "dead  because  of  sin"  (v.  10),  but  in  that 


112  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

day  their  deliverance  will  come.  'For  this  cor- 
ruptible must  needs  put  on  incorruptibility,  and 
this  mortal  put  on  immortality.  But  when  this 
corruptible  shall  have  put  on  incorruptibility,  and 
this  mortal  shall  have  put  on  immortality,  then 
shall  come  to  pass  the  word  written :  Death  has 
been  swallowed  up  in  victory"  {Darby's  Trans- 
lation). 

(5)  "For  in  hope  were  we  saved"  (24,  25,  R. 
v.).  The  King  James  Version  breaks  down 
again  here.  The  191 1  Bible  reads:  ''For  in  that 
hope  were  we  saved."  The  Holy  Spirit  of  God, 
immediately  upon  the  believer's  regeneration,  di- 
rects his  attention  to  the  blessed  hope  set  before 
him.  Things  are  not  to  go  on  forever  as  they 
are  at  present.  The  grace  of  God  that  bringeth 
salvation  has  not  only  delivered  us  from  the  con- 
sequences of  sin  by  the  death  of  the  Lord  Jesus 
on  the  cross,  but  it  has  also  put  us  under  instruc- 
tion, that,  denying  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts, 
we  should  live  soberly  and  righteously  and  godly 
in  this  present  age;  and  it  has  put  before  us  a 
blessed  hope  in  connection  with  the  coming  again 
of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  the  great  God  and  our 
Saviour  (Tit.  2 :  11- 13).  It  is  in  that  hope,  there- 
fore, that  we  have  been  saved.  The  hope  for  the 
present  is  a  matter  of  faith,  for  "hope  that  is  seen 
is  not  hope :  for  what  a  man  seeth,  why  doth  he 
yet  hope  for?  But  if  we  hope  for  that  we  see 
not,  then  do  we  with  patience  wait  for  it." 

(6)  "Likewise  the  Spirit  also  helpeth  our 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  Of  GOD.         113 

infirmity"  (26,  27,  ipii  Bible).  It  is  not  ''in- 
firmities," as  the  King  James  Version  puts  it. 
The  reference  is  to  one  particular  infirmity, 
namely,  in  that  *Ve  know  not  how  to  pray  as  we 
ought:  but  the  Spirit  Himself  maketh  interces- 
sion for  us  with  groanings  which  cannot  be  ut- 
tered." This  is  the  third  groaning  mentioned  in 
this  chapter:  the  burdened  creation  groans,  the 
children  of  God  groan,  and  the  indwelling  Holy 
Spirit  groans;  and  all  these  groanings  are  ex- 
pressive of  a  longing  for  the  glorious  deliverance 
that  is  coming  in  the  salvation  ready  to  be  re- 
vealed in  the  last  time  (i  Pet.  1:5).  The  27th 
verse  pictures  God  the  Father  as  He  that  search- 
eth  the  hearts.  And  He  knows  the  meaning 
even  of  the  Spirit's  unutterable  groaning  ''be- 
cause He  (the  Spirit)  maketh  intercession  for  the 
saints  (even  in  the  groanings  which  cannot  be  ut- 
tered) according  to  the  will  of  God."  There  is 
surely  comfort  here  for  the  weakest  saint  of 
God,  who  often  finds  himself  unable  even  to 
pray.  "The  Spirit  Himself  helpeth  our  infirm- 
ity." 

4.  "We  are  more  than  conquerors"  (28-39). 
The  Holy  Spirit  is  the  Spirit. of  truth,  and  He  as- 
sures the  Christian's  heart  by  the  wonderful  lan- 
guage of  this  closing  paragraph  of  this  wonder- 
ful chapter : 

(i)  "And  we  know  that  all  things  work  to- 
gether for  good  to  them  that  love  God,  to  them 
who  are  the  called  according  to  His  purpose" 


114  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

(28).  "His  purpose"  is  the  great  thing  in  this 
passage.  Who  can  withstand  the  eternal  pur- 
pose of  God?  If  salvation  were  offered  to  the 
believer  conditionally ;  if  something  were  left  to 
his  faithfulness,  or  his  obedience,  or  his  prayer- 
fulness,  then,  indeed,  the  case  would  be  hopeless, 
for  the  history  of  man  shows  that,  whenever  he 
is  put  under  a  system  of  probation,  he  breaks 
down.  The  law  was  such  a  system,  and  under  it 
life  was  offered  as  a  condition  of  obedience :  "He 
that  doeth  these  things  shall  live  by  them ;"  but 
the  law  proved  an  intolerable  burden  (Ac.  15: 
10),  a  ministration  of  condemnation  and  a  minis- 
tration of  death  (2  Cor.  3:  7,  9).  In  the  gospel, 
all  conditions  are  swept  aside,  and  whosoever  will 
may  come.  He  is  only  to  come,  and  God  does 
all  the  rest.  Let  hirrl  come  in  all  his  vileness  and 
weakness,  and  God  will  not  so  much  as  mention 
either  his  vileness  or  his  weakness,  but  will  just 
take  him  into  His  loving  arms,  and  undertake  for 
him,  and  thereafter  see  to  it  that  all  things  work 
together  for  good  unto  him.  This  is  His  eternal 
purpose  which  He  purposed  before  the  world  was, 
and  of  course,  with  such  a  salvation,  based  upon 
such  a  purpose,  it  cannot  be  otherwise  than  that 
all  things  shall  work  together  for  good  unto  the 
children  of  God. 

(2)  "For  whom  He  did  foreknow"  (20,  30). 
The  word  **for"  has  the  force  of  "because,"  and 
it  introduces  the  reason  for  our  assurance  that 
all  things  are  working  together  for  our  good. 


rHB  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.         115 

He  foreknew  us ;  He  also  predestinated  us  to  be 
1  conformed  to  the  image  of  His  Son,  that  He 
I  might  be  the  first  born  among  many  brethren ; 
f  He  also  called  us  with  an  effectual  calling;   and 
He  also  justified  us,  and  He  has  also  glorified 
us.     The  past  tense  continues  through  the  whole 
passage,  although  the  glorification  is  yet  future, 
for  God  is  able  to  count  things  done  even  when 
they  have  not  yet  been  done.     Our  glorification 
is  according  to  His  purpose,  and  nothing  is  to  be 
f^  suffered  to  thwart  His  purpose.     Having  been 
foreknown  and  predestinated  and  called  and  jus- 
tified, we  shall  also  be  glorified. 

(3)  "What  shall  we  then  say  to  these 
things?"  (31).  What  indeed  can  be  said?  "If 
God  be  for  us,  who  can  be  against  us?'*  And 
what  matters  it  whether  any  power  is  against  us ! 
Shall  we  be  afraid  of  anything,  with  God  on  our 
side  ? 

(4)  "He  that  spared  not  His  own  Son,  but 
delivered  him  up  for  us  all,  how  shall  He  not 
with  Him  also  freely  give  us  all  things?"  (32). 
It  would,  indeed,  be  strange  if  God  should  with- 
hold any  good  thing  from  those  to  whom  He  had 
given  His  Son.  In  Christ,  all  things  are  ours, 
for  we  are  Christ's,  and  Christ  is  God's  (i  Cor. 
3:21-23). 

(5)  "Who  shall  lay  anything  to  the  charge 
of  God's  elect?"  (33).  It  is  probable  that  in  this 
whole  passage  Paul  has  followed  the  form  of 
queries,  and  that  the  rest  of  this  verse  should 


ii6  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

read,  as  in  the  191 1  Bible,  "Shall  God,  that  justi- 
fieth?"  And  surely,  if  God — Who  has  justified, 
and  Who  has  therefore  precluded  any  possibility 
of  bringing  a  charge  against  us — if  He  has  noth- 
ing to  accuse  us  of,  then  it  matters  very  little  that 
we  be  judged  of  man's  judgment  (i  Cor.  4:3). 
And  as  for  Satan,  who  accuseth  the  brethren  day 
and  night  before  God,  we  need  not  fear  him,  for 
God  has  justified  us,  and  that  ends  the  matter. 
Satan  is  unable  to  bring  anything  new  against  us, 
for  God  knoweth  us  altogether,  and  He  has 
found  a  way  to  be  just  and  at  the  same  time  our 
Justifier. 

(6)  "Who  is  he  that  condemneth?  Is  it 
Christ,  Who  died,  yea  rather,  Who  is  risen 
again.  Who  is  even  at  the  right  hand  of  God, 
Who  also  maketh  intercession  for  us?"  (34, 
igii  Bible) .  This  surely  ought  to  comfort  every 
believer's  heart.  There  is  nothing  to  fear  from 
Him  who  died  for  us,  and  rose  again,  and  Who 
now  ever  liveth  to  make  intercession  for  us  (Heb. 
7--25). 

(7)  "Who  shall  separate  us  from  the  love 
of  Christ?"  (35-37).  Shall  it  be  tribulation,  or 
distress,  or  persecution,  or  famine,  or  nakedness, 
or  peril,  or  sword?  God's  children  have  always 
been  hated  by  the  world,  and  whenever  such  per- 
secution has  been  permitted,  they  have  been  "ac- 
counted as  sheep  for  the  slaughter;"  and  yet  all 
these  things  have  only  tended  to  increase  their 
devotion  and  their  faithfulness,  and  to  establish 
their  integrity  as  witnesses  unto  Christ. 


THE  RIGHTEOUSNESS  OF  GOD.  117 

(8)  "Nay,  in  all  these  things  we  are  more 
than  conquerors  through  Him  that  loved  us" 

(37).  To  be  more  than  a  conqueror  means  to  be 
unconquerable.  A  man  might  be  a  victor  at  one 
time,  and  a  victim  at  another ;  but  not  so  here,  for 
through  Him  that  loved  us  we  are  kept,  *'kept 
by  the  power  of  God  through  faith  unto  salvation 
ready  to  be  revealed"  (i  Pet.  1:5). 

(9)  "For  I  am  persuaded"  (38,  39).  This 
joyful  song  of  triumph  with  which  the  chapter 
closes  has  been  a  tower  of  strength  to  the  chil- 
dren of  God  ever  since  it  was  written.  The 
chapter  opened  with  "no  condemnation,"  and  it 
closes  with  "no  separation."  God  will  never 
condemn  one  of  His  children,  though  He  may  be 
compelled  in  faithfulness  to  chasten  him  (i  Cor. 
II :  31,  32) ;  and  God  will  never  lose  one  of  His 
children  who  has  come  unto  Him  through  Christ. 
For  such  a  one  these  words  come  from  the 
Father's  own  heart:  "Neither  death,  nor  life, 
nor  angels,  nor  principalities,  nor  powers,  nor 
things  present,  nor  things  to  come,  nor  height, 
nor  depth,  nor  any  other  creature,  shall  be  able 
to  separate  us  from  the  love  of  God,  which  is  in 
Christ  Jesus  our  Lord." 

Thus  endeth  the  main  argument  of  the  epistle. 
The  dreadful  malady  of  sin  was  described  in  all 
its  hideousness  in  the  first  main  division,  but,  if 
the  disease  was  terrible,  the  remedy  is  quite  suffi- 
cient. God,  in  the  gospel,  has  provided  a  right- 
eousness without  spot,  that  saves  and  cleanses 
and  keeps  the  believer,  even  unto  eternity. 


ii8  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

''My  sheep,"  says  the  Good  Shepherd,  "hear 
My  voice,  and  I  know  them,  and  they  follow  Me  : 
and  I  give  unto  them  eternal  life ;  and  they  shall 
never  perish,  neither  shall  any  one  pluck  them 
out  of  My  hand.  My  Father,  Which  gave  them 
Me,  is  greater  than  all ;  and  no  one  is  able  to 
pluck  them  out  of  My  Father's  hand"  (Jno.  lo: 
27-29). 


THIRD  MAIN  DIVISION :  THE  VINDICA- 
TION OF  GOD'S  WAYS 


(Chapters  9 to  ii) 


We  now  come  to  a  new  section  of  our  epistle, 
consisting  of  the  9th,  loth,  and  nth  chapters,  and 
containing  the  ''theodicy,"  or  the  vindication  of 
the  ways  of  God  in  His  dealings  with  Israel. 

"In  chapters  9  to  11,"  says  Dwight, 

"the  second  main  objection  to  the  doctrine  of  justi- 
fication by  faith  is  considered — namely,  that,  by  reason 
of  the  rejection  of  all  unbelieving  Jews  which  it  in- 
volves, it  contradicts  the  promises  of  God  and  His  cove- 
nant with  His  chosen  people." 

"Paul  could  not  do  otherwise,"  says  H.  A.  W. 
Meyer ; 

"he  must  settle  this  great  problem;  this  is  inevitably 
demanded  by  all  that  had  gone  before.  For  if  the  whole 
previous  treatise  had  as  its  result,  that  only  believers 
were  the  recipients  of  the  promised  salvation,  and  if 
nevertheless  the  Messianic  promise  and  destination  to 
salvation  had  their  reference  in  the  first  place  (com- 
pare 1 :  16)  to  the  Israelites,  concerning  whom,  how- 
ever, experience  showed  that  they  were  for  the  most 
part  unbelieving  (compare  Jno,  i:ii),  this  contra- 
dictory relation  thus  furnished  an  enigma,  which  Paul, 
with  his  warm  love  for  his  people,  could  least  of  all 
evade,  but  in  the  solution  of  which  he  had  on  the  con- 

119 


120  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

trary  to  employ  all  the  boldness  and  depth  of  his  cle«ir 
insight  into  the  divine  plan  of  redemption  (Eph.  3:4, 
ff.)  The  defence  of  the  efficacy  of  his  Gentile  apostle- 
ship  (Th.  Schott,  and  in  another  way  Mangold  and 
Sabatier)  is  not  the  object  of  the  section— that  object 
Paul  would  have  known  how  to  meet  directly — but  such 
a  defence  results  indirectly  from  it,  since  we  see  from 
the  section  how  fully  the  apostle  had  recognized  and 
comprehended  his  place  in.  connection  with  the  divine 
plan  of  salvation.  The  problem  itself,  the  solution  of 
which  is  now  taken  in  hand  by  the  apostle,  was  suf- 
ficiently serious  and  momentous  to  be  treated  with  so 
much  detail  in  this  great  and  instructive  letter  to  the 
important  mixed  community  of  the  world's  capital, 
which,  however,  does  not  thereby  appear  to  have  been 
a  Jewish-Christian  one." 

Dr.  Scofield  remarks  that 

"this  great  passage  is  really  a  parenthesis.  Chapter 
12,  which  begins,  *I  beseech  you,  therefore,  brethren, 
by  the  mercies  of  God,  that  ye  present  your  bodies,' 
etc.,  is  the  resumption  of  the  line  of  thought  and 
revelation  abruptly  interrupted  at  the  end  of  chapter 
8.  But,  as  Professor  Stifler  has  pointed  out  with  a 
clearness  and  force  unequalled  by  any  other  commen- 
tator on  Romans,  logic  required  the  apostle  to  insert 
this  section  at  this  precise  point.  It  is  convenient  for  u-s 
to  forget  the  Jew.  It  is  easy,  too,  for  usually  Chris- 
tians know  almost  nothing  of  distinctive  Jewish  cove- 
nant and  promise.  Futhermore,  there  still  lingers  in 
some  minds  the  old  and  often  disproved  notion  that 
Christians  are  now  the  true  Israel.  But  to  the  apostolic 
church  the  question  of  the  relation  of  Judaism  to  the 
new  institution,  the  church,  was  the  most  living  and 
burning  of  questions.  Having,  therefore,  brought  the 
entire  race  into  one  common  condemnation  as  sinners, 
and  opened  the  one  and  only  salvation  in  the  gospel,  the 
question  inevitably  emerges.  What,  then,  becomes  of  the 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    121 

Davidic  covenant,  confirmed  by  the  oath  of  God  and 
renewed  to  the  mother  of  Jesus  by  the  angel  Gabriel? 
What  becomes  of  the  repeated,  specific,  and  absolutely 
unconditional  promises  of  the  restoration  of  all  Israel 
to  the  land  of  their  fathers,  and  the  establishment  again 
of  the  monarchy  in  the  person  of  a  Messiah,  Who  should 
be  Son  and  Heir  of  David?  This  section  is  the  apostle's 
answer.  Just  as  James,  in  the  Jerusalem  council,  showed 
that  the  acceptance  of  the  Gentiles  by  faith  without  cir- 
cumcision not  only  did  not  contradict  the  prophets,  but 
'agreed'  with  them,  since  they  had  predicted  the  restor- 
ation as  occurring  after  the  return  of  the  Lord  (Ac.  15: 
14-17)  ;  so  Paul,  only  more  at  length,  explains  that  this 
gospel  age  is  an  interregnum  fully  foreseen  by  the 
prophets,  and  that,  so  far  ^rom  having  done  with 
national  Israel,  the  Deliverer  shall  yet  come  out  of 
Zion,  and  'all  Israel  (not  'every  Israelite')  shall  be 
saved'"    {"Sco field  Correspondence  Course"). 

In  introducing  this  section,  Mr.  Darby  says 
that 

"there  remained  one  important  question  to  be  consid- 
ered, namely,  how  this  salvation,  common  to  Jew  and 
Gentile,  both  alienated  from  God — this  doctrine  that 
there  was  no  difference — was  to  be  reconciled  with  the 
special  promises  made  to  the  Jews.  The  proof  of  their 
guilt  and  ruin  under  the  law  did  not  touch  the  promises 
of  a  faithful  God.  Was  the  apostle  going  to  do  away 
with  these  to  place  the  Gentiles  on  the  same  footing? 
They  did  not  fail  also  to  accuse  the  apostle  of  having  de- 
spised his  nation  and  its  privileges.  Chapters  9,  10  and 
II  reply  to  this  question;  and,  with  rare  and  admirable 
perfection,  set  forth  the  position  of  Israel  with  respect 
to  God  and  to  the  gospel.  This  reply  opens,  in  itself, 
a  wide  door  to  intelligence  in  the  ways  of  God"  {"Syn- 
opsis"). 


122  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

"The  grace  of  the  gospel  has  now  been  carried 
to  its  issue  in  glory,"  says  Mr.  Grant  {"Numer- 
ical Bible"). 

"The  doctrine  of  the  epistle  is  so  far  concluded ;  but  we 
have  yet  to  see  the  bearing  of  all  this  upon  Israel,  and 
special  promises  given  to  her  of  God.  The  sin  of  man  at 
large  and  of  Israel,  we  may  say  especially,  has  been  fully 
proved.  'There  is  no  difference;  for  all  have  sinned, 
and  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God ;'  but  that  does  not 
affect  at  all  the  question  of  the  faithfulness  of  God  to 
His  own  Word.  Let  man  be  what  he  may;  if  God  has 
spoken,  He  will  surely  fulfil  what  He  has  promised, 
and  here  we  have  to  remember  that  the  promise  to 
Abraham  was  indeed  not  directly  to  the  nation  at  all, 
and  therefore  the  standing  or  fall  of  the  nation  could  not 
affect  it.  It  was  absolute  grace  in  its  nature,  and  as  we 
see  in  the  15th  chapter  of  Genesis,  if  trial  and  suffering, 
if  the  furnace  were  needed  as  well  as  the  lamp,  the 
covenant  included  both,  in  order  to  work  out  the  pur- 
pose of  God.  When  the  law  came  in,  it  was  exceptional 
entirely,  as  the  apostle  says,  'it  came  in  by  the 
way,'  and  for  the  purpose,  not  of  putting  Israel's  title 
to  the  inheritance  upon  a  new  foundation,  but  really  in 
order  to  show  that  nothing  but  absolute  grace  could  be 
the  foundation  of  such  promises  as  hers.  The  law  was 
the  ministration  of  death  and  condemnation,  as  we  have 
fully  seen,  and  if  the  inheritance  were  of  law,  as  the 
apostle  tells  us  afterwards,  it  were  no  more  of  promise. 
Law  and  promise  are  in  absolute  contrast,  in  contra- 
diction, one  may  say,  to  one  another.  Israel  chose  the 
law,  and  so  far,  therefore,  as  she  could  do  it,  gave  up 
the  grace  in  which  God  in  fact  had  been  hitherto  deal- 
ing with  her,  to  accept  the  recompense  of  her  own  de- 
sert. She  found  this  in  result ;  and  it  was  seen  from 
the  beginning  that  it  would  be  terribly  against  her.  The 
new  covenant,  which  still  remains  to  be  fulfilled,  pro- 
vides for  the  fulfillment  of  the  Abrahamic  covenant,  but 


THE  VINDICATION  OP  GOD'S  WAYS.    123 

to  a  people  who  have  sinned,  and  expressly  in  view  of 
their  sins;  but  it  is  absolute  grace  once  more.  It  is  all 
God's  'I  will,'  not  the  legal,  'Thou  shalt.'  Thus,  these 
unconditional  promises  must  be  fulfilled.  The  prophets 
fill  them  out  and  show  us  Israel  on  their  conversion  as 
a  nation  not  lost  in  the  midst  of  the  Gentiles,  but,  on  the 
contrary,  the  centre  of  the  divine  rule  for  the  earth  and 
in  special  nearness  to  the  divine  King.  The  promises 
of  the  Old  Testament  have  nothing  to  do  with  heaven, 
no  thought  of  any  one  going  there.  They  concern  the 
earth;  and  here  the  blessing  for  the  earth  of  necessity 
implies  the  blessing  for  Israel.  Isaiah  affirms  the  eternal 
perpetuity  of  their  seed  and  name,  not  merely  for  the 
millennium,  but  'as  the  new  heavens  and  the  new  earth,' 
says  God,  'which  I  will  make,  shall  remain  before  Me, 
so  shall  her  seed  and  her  name  remain.'  Thus  Israel's 
distinct  existence,  and  as  it  is  implied,  distinct  privilege, 
remains  eternal.  There  is  no  escape  from  this,  except 
into  the  utter  confusion  in  which  so  many  are,  between 
the  earthly  people  and  the  heavenly,  Israel  and  the 
church.  If  we  will  only  read  Scripture  with  the  sim- 
plicity which  belongs  to  it,  if  we  will  only  allow  that 
God  means  exactly  what  he  says,  there  will  be  no  diffi- 
culty at  all  in  discerning  that  Israel's  promises  abide  in 
spite  of  all  that  has  come  in  apparently  to  set  them  aside, 
and  (for  a  time)  in  fact  has  done  so." 

Before  proceeding  to  the  study  of  the  sectioti, 
let  us  heed  this  word  of  caution  from  Dean  Al- 
ford: 

"In  no  part  of  the  epistles  of  St.  Paul,  is  it  more  requi- 
site than  in  this  portion  to  bear  in  mind  his  habit  of  in- 
sulating the  one  view  of  the  subject  under  consideration 
with  which  he  is  at  the  time  dealing.  The  divine  side  of 
the  history  of  Israel  and. the  world  is  in  the  greater  part 
of  this  portion  thus  insulated:  the  facts  of  the  divine 
dealings  and  the  divine  decrees  insisted  on,  and  the  mun- 


124  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

dane  .or  human  side  of  that  history  kept  for  the  most 
part  out  of  sight,  and  only  so  much  shown  as  to  make 
it  manifest  that  the  Jews,  on  their  part,  failed  of  at- 
taining God's  righteousness,  and  so  lost  their  share  in 
the  gospel.  It  must  also  be  remembered  that,  whatever 
inferences,  with  regard  to  God's  disposal  of  individuals, 
may  justly  lie  from  the  apostle's  arguments,  the  asser- 
tions here  made  by  him  are  universally  spoken  with  a 
national  reference.  Of  the  eternal  salvation  or  rejection 
of  any  individual  Jew  there  is  here  no  question:  and 
however  logically  true  of  any  individual  the  same  con- 
clusion may  be  shown  to  be,  we  know  as  a  matter  of 
fact  that  in  such  cases  not  the  divine  but  the  human 
side  is  that  ever  held  up  by  the  apostle — the  universality 
of  free  grace  for  all — the  riches  of  God's  mercy  to  all 
who  call  on  Him,  and  consequent  exhortations  to  all  to 
look  to  Him  and  be  saved.  The  apparent  inconsistencies 
of  the  apostle,  at  one  time  speaking  of  absolute  de- 
crees of  God,  and  at  another  of  culpability  in  man, — at 
one  time  of  the  election  of  some,  at  another  of  a  hope 
of  the  conversion  of  all, — resolve  themselves  into  the 
necessary  conditions  of  thought  under  which  we  all  are 
placed,  being  compelled  to  acknowledge  the  divine 
sovereignty  on  the  one  hand,  and  human  free  will  on 
the  other,  and  alternately  appearing  to  lose  sight  of  one 
of  these,  as  often  as  for  the  time  we  confine  our  view 
to  the  other." 

Proceeding  now  to  the  consideration  of  the 
section  in  detail,  we  find  it  yielding  itself  readily 
to  simple  analysis,  in  keeping  with  the  chapter 
divisions:  (i)  Israel's  failure  and  rejection  ac- 
knowledged (ch.  9)  ;  (2)  Israel's  rejection  is 
the  result  of  Israel's  failure  (ch.  10)  ;  (3)  Is- 
rael's rejection  is  neither  complete  nor  final  (ch. 
11).     The  object  of  the  Spirit  of  truth  in  the 


THB  VINDICATION  OP  GOD'S  WAYS.    125 

whole  section  is  to  show  that  "the  ways  of  the 
Lord  are  right  ways." 

I.  IsRAEi^'s  Failure  and  Rejection  Acknowl- 
edged (Chapter  9.) 

1,  "I  say  the  truth  in  Christ,  I  lie  not,  my 
conscience  also  bearing  me  witness  in  the  Holy 
Ghost,  that  I  have  great  heaviness  and  con- 
tinual sorrow  in  my  heart"  (i,  2).  The  change 
from  the  triumphant  strain  of  the  preceding 
chapter  is  startling.  Dr.  Stifler  suggests  that  it 
may  be  accounted  for  psychologically.  "The 
apostle,"  says  he,  "had  just  been  contemplating 
the  certainty  of  the  glory  of  the  sons  of  God ; 
his  heart  goes  now  to  the  other  extreme,  the  fail- 
ure and  misery  of  his  own  countrymen.  The 
vehement  language  was  necessary,  because  in  giv- 
ing the  gospel  to  the  heathen  Paul  was  looked 
upon  by  the  Jew  as  the  enemy  of  his  own  nation. 
Some  of  the  Roman  church,  knowing  as  they  did 
the  exclusiveness  of  the  Jews,  might  be  persuaded 
that  Paul  was  an  apostate  rather  than  an  apostle 
of  God.  He  must  defend  himself.  He  is  about 
to  outline  Israel's  shame.  Let  it  be  seen  that  the 
picture  is  drawn  not  by  an  enemy,  but  by  a  lov- 
ing friend,  whose  heart  is  breaking  as  he  paints." 

2.  "For  I  could  wish  that  myself  were  ac- 
cursed from  Christ  for  my  brethren,  my  kins- 
men according  to  the  flesh"  (3).  Many  and 
varied  are  the  comments  on  this  verse,  the  writers 
often  shrinking  from  the  obvious  meaning  of  the 


126  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

words  as  they  stand.  Wakefield  cuts  the  trouble- 
some knot  at  one  stroke  by  reading:  *'I  have 
great  grief  and  continual  sorrow  of  heart  (for  I 
also  was  once  an  alien  from  Christ)  on  account 
of  my  brethren,"  etc.  In  a  note  he  says :  "I  see 
no  method  of  solving  the  difficulty  in  this  verse, 
which  has  so  exercised  the  learning  and  ingenuity 
of  commentators,  but  by  the  euchomai  einai  of 
Homer — I  profess  myself  to  be.  This  solution 
makes  the  passage  rational  and  plain."  Alford 
holds  that  the  literal  reading  is,  "I  was  wishing," 
etc.,  and  says :  "This  imperfect  tense  is  not  his- 
torical, alluding  to  his  days  of  Pharisaism,  as 
some  have  supposed,  but  implies,  as  very  often, 
a  half-expression  of  a  desire:  *I  was  wishing, 
had  it  been  possible.' "  Darby  reads,  "For  I 
have  wished,  I  myself,  to  be  a  curse  from  Christ 
for  my  brethren,"  and  remarks :  "Moses,  in  his 
anguish,  had  said,  'Blot  me  out  of  Thy  book.' 
Paul  had  not  been  behind  him  in  his  love."  In 
his  "New  Testament  in  Braid  Scots,"  William 
Wye  Smith  renders:  "There  is  muckle  dool  to 
me,  and  constant  sorrow  i'  my  heart,  for  I  mysel' 
coud  hae  wiss't  mysel'  devotit  by  Christ,  for  my 
brethren's  sake,  my  kin  eftir  the  flesh."  In  a 
note  he  says:  "Sinder't  frae  ony  common  use; 
as  was  an  offeran  i'  the  temple.  The  sense  is  ob- 
scure: and  we  haena  Paul  to  expone  it.  While 
it  may  mean  torn  frae  a'  things  in  this  life,  and 
frae  life  itsel',  it  disna  mean  sinder't  frae  Christ 
for  eternity."     And  John  Wesley,  in  his  Notes  on 


THH  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    127 

the  New  Testament,  says  of  the  passage:  "Hu- 
man words  cannot  fully  describe  the  motions  of 
souls  that  are  full  of  God.  As  if  he  had  said,  I 
could  wish  to  suffer  in  their  stead ;  yea,  to  be  an 
anathema  from  Christ  in  their  place.  In  how 
high  a  sense  he  wished  this,  who  can  tell,  unless 
himself  had  been  asked,  and  had  resolved  the 
question?  Certainly  he  did  not  then  consider 
himself  at  all,  but  only  others,  and  the  glory  of 
God.  The  thing  could  not  be ;  yet  the  wish  was 
pious  and  solid ;  though  with  a  tacit  condition, 
if  it  were  right  and  possible."  "The  language," 
says  Stifler,  "is  startling  and  has  troubled  many ; 
but  it  is  in  the  very  spirit  of  Israel's  great  leader, 
Moses  (Ex.  32 :  32),  and  may  we  not  say,  though 
the  word  is  different,  in  the  spirit  of  Christ  (Gal. 
3:  13)  ?  Besides,  this  is  not  the  language  of  de- 
liberation, but  of  heart-breaking  passion,  in 
which  he  says,  'I  could  (were  it  permitted  or 
were  it  possible)  wish  myself  accursed  (away) 
from  (not  'by')  Christ.'  It  is  this  grief  at  the 
loss  of  men,  this  intense  yearning  for  their  sal- 
vation, that  made  Paul  the  preacher  he  was." 

3.  "Who  are  Israelites"  (4).  In  chapter  3 
the  question  was  raised,  "What  advantage  then 
hath  the  Jew?"  And  the  answer  was  ready: 
"Much  every  way."  That  answer  is  amplified  in 
the  sevenfold  summary  found  in  our  9th  chapter. 
Surely,  Israel's  position  before  God  was  one  to 
be  coveted ;  for  to  this  people  pertaineth  : 

(i)  "The  adoption."     They  were  adopted  as 


128  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

God's  people  from  among  the  nations.  Their 
adoption,  as  spoken  of  here,  is  not  individual,  but 
national.  It  is  a  different  thing  from  the  New 
Testament  adoption,  but  it  is  yet  a  thing  to  be 
greatly  desired,  and  a  thing  for  which  to  be  deep- 
ly grateful. 

(2)  "And  the  glory."  The  Shekinah  cloud 
of  glory  led  them  and  followed  them  in  their 
wilderness  wanderings.  Thus  they  had  been 
made  companions  of  the  Holy  Spirit  (Heb.  6:4). 

(3)  "And  the  covenants."  The  Abrahamic 
covenant,  the  Mosaic  covenant,  the  Davidic  cove- 
nant— all  were  theirs,  and  all  are  yet  theirs,  de- 
spite their  failure.  The  Gentiles,  on  the  con- 
trary, are  "aliens  from  the  commonwealth,"  and 
therefore  "strangers  from  the  covenants  of 
promise,  having  no  hope,  and  without  God  in  the 
world"  (Eph.  2: 12). 

(4)  "And  the  giving  of  the  law."  The  Gen- 
tiles "have  not  the  law"  (Rom.  2:14).  "If 
others  boasted  of  their  Solons  and  Lycurguses, 
how  far  juster  ground  of  boasting  is  there  of  the 
Lord  as  lawgiver"  {Calvin). 

(5)  "And  the  service."  They  alone,  among 
all  the  nations  of  the  world,  had  an  authorized 
form  of  worship;  they  were  taught  the  way  of 
approach  to  God. 

(6)  "And  the  promises."  Even  the  promise 
of  the  Redeemer  was  peculiarly  Israel's,  though 
it  was  first  given  to  the  whole  race  in  Eden,  for 
it  was  ultimately  confined  to  the  seed  of  Abra- 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    129 

ham,  Isaac  and  Jacob,  the  tribe  of  Judah,  and 
house  of  David.  Let  it  not  be  forgotten  that  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  was  primarily  "a  minister  of 
the  circumcision  for  the  truth  of  God,  to  con- 
firm the  promises  made  unto  the  fathers,"  and 
that  the  showing  of  mercy  to  the  Gentiles  was  a 
thing  that  came  afterwards  (Rom.  15  :  8,  9).  In 
Heb.  7 : 6,  Abraham  is  described  as  "him  that 
had  the  promises." 

(7)  "Whose  are  the  fathers."  What  other 
nation  ever  had  such  fathers?  "Abraham,  the 
head  of  many  nations,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  were 
theirs;  other  nations  had  great  ancestors,  but 
Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob  have  the  honor  of 
being  not  merely  natural,  but  divinely  chosen 
chiefs"  {Stiiier). 

4.  "And  of  whom  as  concerning  the  flesh 
Christ  came"  (5).  "Besides  these  seven  all 
their  own,  the  Israelites  had  one  other  honor  in 
which  they  shared,  an  honor  that  overtops  all  the 
rest.  The  'whose'  changes  to  *of  whom.'  The 
fathers  were  theirs,  but  the  Christ,  though  He 
came  from  them  in  His  human  relation,  belongs 
to  the  world"  {StiUer).  "The  expression  ('and 
of  whom  is  Christ,  so  far  as  regards  the  flesh') 
implies  that  He  was  not  entirely  sprung  from 
them,  but  had  another  nature;  *on  His  human 
side/ — *as  far  as  pertains  to  His  human  body'  " 
{Alford). 

5.  "Who  is  over  all,  God  blessed  for  ever. 
Amen" (5).     There  has  been  much  controversy 


130  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

over  the  punctuation  and  application  of  this 
Scripture.  Those  who  deny  our  Lord's  deity  in- 
sist that  we  should  read  here,  "Blessed  for  ever 
be  the  God  Who  is  over  all !"  and  that  the  words 
are  to  be  understood  as  a  doxology  to  the  Father. 
By  the  early  church,  however,  it  was  generally 
rendered  as  in  our  English  Bible,  and  applied  to 
Christ.  This  rendering,  says  Dean  Alford,  "is 
not  only  that  most  agreeable  to  the  usage  of  the 
apostle,  but  the  only  one  admissible  by  the  rules 
of  grammar  and  arrangement.  It  also  admirably 
suits  the  context:  for,  having  enumerated  the 
historic  advantages  of  the  Jewish  people,  he  con- 
cludes by  stating  one  which  ranks  far  higher  than 
all, — that  from  them  sprung,  according  to  the 
flesh.  He  Who  is  God  over  all,  blessed  for  ever." 
H.  A.  W.  Meyer,  though  opposing  this  view,  yet 
acknowledges  that  the  words  may  be  interpreted 
as  referring  to  Christ;  and  both  Weiss  and 
Dwight,  Meyer's  editors,  agree  with  Alford's 
conclusions  as  above.  Stifier  says  that  "Sanday, 
after  an  exhaustive  examination  of  all  the  argu- 
ments bearing  on  the  punctuation  of  this  passage, 
*with  some  slight,  but  only  slight,  hesitation,'  ad- 
mits that  Paul  here  applies  the  name  God  to 
Christ." 

The  claim  is  made  that  Paul  does  not  any- 
where else  call  Christ  God.  But  this  is  an  error, 
for  Paul  calls  Christ  God  in  Ac.  20:  28;  in  Col. 
1 :  16  he  declares  that  "all  things  were  made  by 
Him  and  for  Him ;"   and  in  Col.  2 : 9  he  writes 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     131 

that  "in  Him  dwelleth  all  the  fulness  of  the  God- 
head bodily."  In  addition  to  this,  there  is  little 
doubt  that  Hebrews  was  written  by  Paul,  and  in 
the  first  chapter  of  that  epistle  Christ  is  repeated- 
ly called  by  names  of  deity. 

However,  no  one  who  really  knows  Christ  de- 
nies or  doubts  His  deity.  By  His  supernatural 
birth  (Isa.  7 :  13,  14;  Mat.  i :  22,  23),  and  by  His 
supernatural  resurrection  from  the  dead  (Jno.  8: 
46 ;  Rom.  1:4),  as  well  as  by  all  that  lay  be- 
tween, He  was  shown  to  be  God  in  the  flesh. 
We  receive  Him  as  such,  and  adore  Him  as  such, 
bowing  before  Him  with  His  disciple  Thomas, 
and  worshipping  Him  as  our  Lord  and  our  God. 

6.  "Not  as  though  the  Word  of  God  hath 
taken  none  effect"  (6-13).  There  had  been 
failure,  but  the  failure  was  not  God's.  The  peo- 
ple had  broken  down,  but  the  great  promises  of 
the  covenant  were  not  conditional  promises,  they 
were  not  made  to  depend  upon  the  faithfulness 
of  the  people.  The  Word  of  God  must  be  ful- 
filled. "If  we  are  faithless,  He  abideth  faithful; 
for  He  cannot  deny  Himself"  (2  Tim.  2:  13,  R. 
v.).  In  the  paragraph  before  us,  all  this  is 
brought  out  in  answer  to  the  natural  questionings 
that  would  arise  in  regard  to  God's  dealings  with 
Israel.  The  case  is  not  "as  though  the  Word  of 
God  hath  taken  none  effect,"  or  as  though  it 
"hath  come  to  nought"  {R.  V.),  or  as  though  it 
"had  failed"  (ioit  Bible).  The  Word  of  God 
still  remained  unbroken.     The  promise  of  God 


132  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

had  not  been  set  aside.  The  proof  of  this  is  in 
what  follows : 

(i)  "For  they  are  not  all  Israel,  which  are 
of  Israel"  (6).  The  promise  was  not  for  all  the 
nation  of  Israel.  The  apostle  is  making  a  dis- 
tinction here  between  natural  Israelites  and  those 
among  them  who  were  men  of  faith.  Believing 
Gentiles  are  not  in  view  just  now,  though  they 
are  elsewhere  called  Abraham's  spiritual  seed. 
In  the  passage  before  us,  he  is  considering  only 
the  two  kinds  of  Israelites,  the  natural  and  the 
spiritual  Israel  (compare  Rom.  4:  1-3;  Gal.  3: 
6,7;  Jno.  8:37-39). 

(2)  "Neither,  because  they  are  the  seed  of 
Abraham,  are  they  all  children :  but.  In  Isaac 
shall  thy  seed  be  called"  (7).  Abraham  had 
other  children  besides  Isaac.  Ishmael  was  born 
before  Isaac,  and  there  were  many  sons  born 
afterward  of  Keturah  (Gen.  25  :  1-4),  and  yet  the 
Messianic  promise  was  confined  to  Isaac  and  his 
seed.  The  principle  of  God's  sovereign  elective 
grace  is  thus  established  at  the  outset.  The  Jew 
could  not  deny  this  principle,  and  thus  shut  out 
the  Gentiles  from  the  promise,  unless  he  was  will- 
ing to  include  the  Ishmaelites  and  the  descendants 
of  Keturah  with  himself  in  the  promise.  ''That 
is.  They  which  are  the  children  of  the  flesh,  these 
are  not  the  children  of  God :  but  the  children  of 
the  promise  are  counted  for  the  seed.  For  this 
is  the  word  of  promise.  At  this  time  will  I  come, 
and  Sarah  shall  have  a  son"  (vs.  8,  9,  compare 
Gen.  21 :  12;   18:  10). 


THB  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     133 

(3)  "And  not  only  this"  (10).  The  apostle 
now  cites  the  case  of  Jacob  and  Esau,  the  twin 
sons  of  Isaac  and  Rebecca.  While  these  children 
were  yet  in  their  mother's  womb,  before  they  had 
done  any  good  or  evil,  'It  was  said  unto  her,  The 
elder  shall  serve  the  younger"  (v.  12,  compare 
Gen.  25:23).  The  reason  given  for  this  decree 
is  simply,  "that  the  purpose  of  God... might 
stand."  It  is  "according  to  election ...  not  of 
works,  but  of  him  that  calleth"  (v.  11).  In  the 
case  of  Ishmael,  it  might  be  objected,  that,  being 
born  of  a  slave  woman,  he  was  set  aside  on  that 
account,  but  this  objection  cannot  stand  as  touch- 
ing the  case  of  Esau  and  Jacob.  Though  they 
were  twins,  Esau  was  yet  the  first-born,  and  God 
decreed  that  this  first-born  should  be  subject  to 
his  younger  brother,  and,  as  we  have  observed, 
the  only  reason  given  for  it  is  that  it  was  accord- 
ing  to  the  purpose  of  God.  The  decree  itself 
went  far  beyond  the  persons  of  Esau  and  Jacob, 
as  will  be  seen  by  reference  to  the  Scripture  cited. 
Gen.  25 :  23 :  "And  Jehovah  said  unto  her.  Two 
nations  are  in  thy  womb,  and  two  peoples  shall 
be  separated  from  thy  bowels :  and  the  one  peo- 
ple shall  be  stronger  than  the  other  people ;  and 
the  elder  shall  serve  the  younger"  (R.  V.).  On 
this  Dean  Alford  says:  "But  the  nations  must 
be  considered  as  spoken  of  in  their  progenitors, 
and  the  elder  nation  is  in  fact  that  sprung  from 
the  elder  brother.  History  records  several  sub- 
jugations of  Edom  by  the  kings  of  Judah ;   first 


134  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

by  David  (2  Sam.  8:14); — under  Joram  they 
rebelled  (2  Ki.  8:20),  but  were  defeated  by 
Amaziah  (2  Ki.  14:7),  and  Elath  taken  from 
them  by  Uzziah  (2  Ki.  14:  22)  ;  under  Ahaz  they 
were  again  free,  and  troubled  Judah  (2  Chron. 
28:16,  17,  compare  2  Ki.  16:6,  7) — and  con- 
tinued free,  as  prophesied  in  Gen.  27 :  40,  till  the 
time  of  John  Hyrcanus,  who  reduced  them  final- 
ly, so  that  thenceforward  they  were  incorporated 
among  the  Jews :  as  it  is  written,  Jacob  I  loved, 
but  Esau  I  hated  (there  is  no  necessity  here  to 
soften  the  'hated'  into  'loved  less' :  the  words  in 
Malachi  proceed  on  the  fullest  meaning  of  hate, 
see  V.  4,  'The  people  against  whom  Jehovah  hath 
indignation  for  ever')." 

7.  "What  shall  we  say  then?  Is  there  un- 
righteousness with  God?"  (14-18).  The  apos- 
tle's exclamatory  reply,  "God  forbid !"  is  the  lan- 
guage of  faith,  for  faith  cannot  for  a  moment 
tolerate  the  insinuation  that  there  is  unrighteous- 
ness with  God : 

(i)  "For  he  saith  to  Moses,  I  will  have 
mercy  on  whom  I  will  have  mercy,  and  I  will 
have  compassion  on  whom  I  will  have  compas- 
sion" (15).  "Paul  finds  the  argument  for  his 
vehement  denial  of  injustice  in  God,"  says  Dr. 
Stifler,  "not  by  abstract  reasoning  about  the  idea 
of  justice,  but  in  the  Scriptures.  The  quotation 
is  from  Ex.  33 :  19.  The  great  Jewish  captain 
is  earnestly  seeking  grace  from  God.  It  might 
be  supposed  that  he  could  attain  it  on  the  ground 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    135 

of  his  office  and  merit ;  but  even  'to  Moses,'  God 
saith,  He  gives  mercy  not  because  he  is  Moses,  or 
because  he  seeks  it,  but  just  because  it  is  God's 
*wiir  to  do  so.  It  is  a  bold,  crisp  assertion  of  the 
divine  freedom  in  bestowing  grace.  'In  any  case 
through  human  history  vv^herein  I  shall  be  seen 
to  have  mercy,  the  one  account  I  give  of  the  radi- 
cal cause  is  this — I  have  mercy'  (Moule). 
Mercy  is  the  outward  manifestation  of  the  feel- 
ing of  compassion."  And  according  to  Dean  Al- 
ford,  "The  meaning  apparently  is,  'Whenever  I 
have  mercy  on  any,  it  shall  be  pure  mercy,  no 
human  desert  contributing;'  which  agrees  better 
with  the  next  verse  than  the  ordinary  rendering, 
which  lays  the  stress  on  the  ^whomsoever ;'  and 
is  not  inconsistent  with  v.  18,  'he  hath  mercy  on 
whom  he  will ;'  because  if  God's  mercy  be  pure 
mercy  without  any  desert  on  man's  part,  it  nec- 
essarily follows  that  He  has  mercy  on  whom  He 
will,  His  will  being  the  only  assignable  cause  of 
the  selection." 

(2)  "So  then  it  is  not  of  him  that  willeth, 
nor  of  him  that  runneth,  but  of  God  that  shew- 
eth  mercy"  (16).  The  human  element  is  sim- 
ply excluded.  Mercy  is  shown  not  according  as 
men  will  to  receive  it,  or  run  after  it,  but  accord- 
ing to  God's  own  purpose.  We  shall  return  to 
this  a  little  further  on  in  the  chapter. 

(3)  "For  the  Scripture  saith  unto  Pharaoh, 
Even  for  this  same  purpose  have  I  raised  thee 
up,  that  I  might  shew  My  power  in  thee,  and 


136  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

that  My  name  might  be  declared  throughout 
all  the  earth"  (17).  The  quotation  here  is  from 
Ex.  9:  16,  and  it  leads  to  the  conclusion  of  our 
i8th  verse:  "Therefore  hath  He  mercy  on  whom 
He  will  have  mercy,  and  whom  He  will  He  hard- 
eneth." 

"Ten  times  in  the  Scripture,"  says  Dr.  Stifler, 
"about  Pharaoh  it  is  said  he  hardened  himself; 
but  Paul  makes  no  account  of  this,  for  his  clear 
intention  is  to  account  for  Pharaoh's  overthrow 
by  the  free  purpose  of  God. 

And  yet  God  did  not  harden  him  for  the  sake  of  the 
hardening,  but  that  the  divine  power  might  have  a  field 
of  display  and  that  the  divine  name  might  become  known. 
If  Pharaoh  had  willingly  and  sweetly  allowed  the  peo- 
ple to  depart,  there  could  have  been  no  miracles  'in 
Egypt  and  in  the  Red  Sea'  (Ac.  7:  36),  and  the  children 
of  Israel  would  have  had  no  fame  as  God's  own  chosen,  a 

fame  that  endured  for  centuries    (i    Sam.  5:8) 

God  is  absolute  sovereign,  allowing  nothing  to  direct 
His  activity  but  His  own  will.  His  Word  is  true,  as 
true,  as  He  is,  but  He  has  never  uttered  a  word  to 
abridge  His  freedom.  This  hardening  process  is  going 
on  to-day;  it  can  be  read  as  clearly  in  current  history 
as  in  God's  Word.  And  yet  man  is  also  free  in  choosing 
God  and  free  in  refusing  Him.  The  reconciliation  of 
these  two  is  a  question  of  philosophy,  and  philosophy 
fails  in  the  effort.  The  Bible  does  not  attempt  it,  but 
stops  with  asserting  that  both  are  realities." 

Augustine  says : 

"Let  it  be  enough  for  the  Christian,  living  as  yet 
by  faith,  and  not  yet  seeing  what  is  perfect,  but  know- 


THB  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS,    137 

ing  it  only  in  part,  to  know,  or  to  believe,  that  God 
acquits  none  except  of  His  free  mercy,  through  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  condemns  none,  except  of  most 
equitable  justice,  through  the  same  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  But  why  He  acquits  or  does  not  acquit  one 
rather  than  another,  let  him  who  can,  search  into  the  so 
great  deep  of  His  judgments:  but — let  him  beware  of 
the  precipitous  descent." 

Mr.  Darby  says,  that  God's  sovereignty  is  the 
first  of  all  rights. 

"But  in  what  case  had  He  exercised  this  right?  In 
a  case  that  concerned  that  right  of  Israel  to  blessing, 
of  which  the  Jews  sought  to  avail  themsleves.  All 
Israel  would  have  been  cut  off,  if  God  had  dealt  in 
righteousness ;  there  was  nothing  but  the  sovereignty  of 
God  which  could  be  a  door  of  escape.  God  retreated  into 
His  sovereignty  in  order  to  spare  whom  He  would,  and 
so  had  spared  Israel  (justice  would  have  condemned 
them  all  alike,  gathered  round  the  golden  calf  which 
they  set  up  to  worship) — this,  on  the  side  of  mercy;  on 
that  of  judgment,  Pharaoh  served  for  an  example.  The 
enemy  of  God,  and  of  His  people,  he  had  treated  the 
claims  of  God  with  contempt,  exalting  himself  proudly 
against  Him — 'Who  is  Jehovah  that  I  should  obey  Him? 
I  will  not  let  His  people  go.'  Pharaoh  being  in  this 
state,  Jehovah  uses  him  to  give  an  example  of  His 
wrath  and  judgment.  So  that  He  shows  mercy  to  whom 
He  will,  and  hardens  whom  He  will.  Man  complains  of 
it,  as  he  does  of  the  grace  that  justifies  freely." 

8.  "Thou  wilt  say  then  unto  me,  Why  doth 
He  yet  find  fault?  For  who  hath  resisted  His 
will?"  (19-24).  The  objector  has  taken  an  ad- 
vanced step  here.  Up  to  this  point  he  has  been 
content  merely  to  call  God's  justice  into  question, 


138  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

but  now  he  practically  charges  God  with  injus- 
tice: 

( 1 )  "Nay  but,  O  man,  who  art  thou  that  re- 
pliest  against  God?"  (20).  "Such  replying,"  as 
Mr.  Grant  points  out,  "must  necessarily  be  in 
vain.  Could  one  succeed  in  establishing  his 
cause  against  Him,  what  could  it  be?  It  would 
be  the  ruin  of  everything.  Think  of  being  able 
to  show  that  God  was  not  the  righteous,  holy, 
gracious  God  He  is!  Think  of  the  disaster 
everywhere  which  would  result  from  such  a 
thing!  The  moment  we  speak  of  God,  we  must 
be  still  and  know  that  He  is  God ;  and  the  apostle 
insists  upon  this  in  the  first  place." 

(2)  "Shall  the  thing  formed  say  to  him  that 
formed  it.  Why  hast  thou  made  me  thus? 
Hath  not  the  potter  power  over  the  clay,  of  the 
same  lump  to  make  one  vessel  unto  honour,  and 
another  unto  dishonour?"  (20,  21).  The  word 
"power,"  in  this  passage,  the  Revision  changes 
to  "right" — "Hath  not  the  potter  a  right  over  the 
clay?"  There  is  reference  here  to  Isa.  29:  16, 
where  it  is  written:  "Shall  the  work  say  of  him 
that  made  it,  He  made  me  not  ?  or  shall  the  thing 
framed  say  of  him  that  framed  it,  He  had  no  un- 
derstanding?" Again,  in  Isa.  45:9,  we  read: 
"Shall  the  clay  say  to  him  that  fashioneth  it, 
What  makest  thou?  or  thy  work,  He  hath  no 
hands  ?"  In  the  apocryphal  book  of  Ecclesiasticus, 
33  :  13,  there  is  similar  language :  "As  the  clay  is 
in  the  potter's  hand  to  fashion  it  at  his  pleasure, 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     139 

so  man  is  in  the  hand  of  Him  that  made  him  to 
render  to  them  as  Uketh  Him  best."  Again,  in 
the  book  of  Wisdom,  15:7,  it  is  written:  "For 
the  potter,  tempering  soft  earth,  fashioneth  every 
vessel  with  much  labour  for  our  service :  yea,  of 
the  same  clay  he  maketh  both  the  vessels  that 
serve  for  clean  uses,  and  likewise  also  all  such  as 
serve  to  the  contrary:  but  what  is  the  use  of 
either  sort  the  potter  himself  is  the  judge." 
There  is  a  word  from  Jehovah  in  Jer.  18:  6,  say- 
ing, **0  house  of  Israel,  cannot  I  do  with  you  as 
this  potter?  saith  Jehovah.  Behold,  as  the  clay 
is  in  the  potter's  hand,  so  are  ye  in  Mine  hand,  O 
house  of  Israel."  The  same  figure  is  employed 
in  2  Tim.  2 :  20,  21,  though  with  a  different  pur- 
pose in  view.  What  we  have  in  the  9th  of  Ro- 
mans is  the  free  sovereignty  of  God.  It  is  well 
to  remember  this,  and  to  follow  Dean  Alford's 
example.     He  says: 

"I  must  pause  here  to  remind  the  student,  that  I 
purposely  do  not  enter  on  the  disquisition  so  abundant 
in  some  commentaries  on  this  part  of  Scripture,  by 
which  it  is  endeavored  to  reconcile  the  sovereign  election 
of  God  with  our  free  will.  We  shall  find  that  free 
will  asserted  strongly  enough  for  all  edifying  pur- 
poses by  this  apostle,  when  the  time  comes.  At  pres- 
ent, he  is  employed  wholly  in  asserting  the  divine  sov- 
ereignty, the  glorious  vision  of  which  it  ill  becomes  us 
to  distract  by  continual  downward  looks  on  this  earth. 

It  is  in  parts  of  Scripture  like  this,  that  we  must 

be  especially  careful  not  to  fall  short  of  what  is  writ- 
ten: not  to  allow  of  any  compromise  of  the  plain  and 
awful  words  of  God's  Spirit  for  the  sake  of  a  caution 
which  He  Himself  does  not  teach  us." 


140  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

(3)  "What  if  God,  willing  to  shew  His 
wrath,  and  to  make  His  power  known,  endured 
with  much  longsuffering  the  vessels  of  wrath 
fitted  to  destruction :  and  that  He  might  make 
known  the  riches  of  His  glory  on  the  vessels  of 
mercy,  which  He  had  afore  prepared  unto  glory, 
even  us,  whom  He  hath  called,  not  of  the  Jews 
only,  but  also  of  the  Gentiles?"  (22-24).  The 
word  "willing,"  in  the  22d  verse,  should  be  read, 
"wishing,"  or  "purposing."  The  meaning  of  the 
passage  is,  that,  while  God  has  a  perfect  right 
to  destroy  all  sinners  at  once,  He  has  also  a  right 
to  show  mercy  where  He  wills,  and  to  restrain 
His  wrath  where  He  wills,  in  order  to  fulfill  His 
purpose. 

9.  "As  he  saith"  (25-29) : 

(i)  Two  quotations  from  Hosea  (2:23;  i: 
10)  are  cited  in  vs.  25  and  26.  By  referring  to 
the  prophecy  itself,  it  will  be  seen  that,  in  both 
cases,  the  direct  application  was  to  Israel,  while 
the  citation  in  Romans  has  reference  to  the  Gen- 
tiles. "Both  passages,"  Mr.  Grant  remarks,  "re- 
fer to  God's  purposes  with  regard  to  Israel  in 
the  time  to  come,  but  as  a  principle  they  equally 
show  how  He  is  acting  and  how  He  has  title  to 
act  in  His  present  grace.  The  men  of  the  Gen- 
tiles, who  were  not  His  people,  He  is  calling  His 
people,;  and  where  He  had  said  unto  them,  *Ye 
are  not  My  people,'  there  they  are  now  called  of 
Him  His  children.  The  apostle  does  not  say  that 
this  is  an  exact  fulfillment  of  Hosea's  words. 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    141 

It  is  a  fulfillment  in  principle,  and  that  is  all  that 
is  implied  in  his  quotation." 

(2)  Two  quotations  from  Isaiah  are  also  found 
here.  They  are  from  Isa.  10 :  22,  ff .,  and  1:9; 
and  the  apostle  quotes  them  to  prove  that  it  is 
only  by  God's  grace  that  even  the  remnant  out  of 
Israel  is  saved. 

10.  "What  shall  we  say  then?"  (30-33). 
The  question  raised  finds  its  answer  in  the  words 
following : 

(i)  "That  Gentiles,  who  followed  not  after 
righteousness,  have  obtained  righteousness, 
even  the  righteousness  which  is  of  faith"  (30, 
191 1  Bible).  The  article  ''the,"  before  Gentiles, 
is  wrongly  found  in  both  the  King  James  and  the 
Revised  Versions.  The  statement  would  not  be 
true  as  applied  to  "the  Gentiles"  en  masse.  It  is 
true,  however,  of  certain  Gentiles  that  they  have, 
by  the  sovereign  grace  of  God,  attained  unto  a 
righteousness  which  is  of  faith.  In  this  and  the 
next  verse,  we  have  a  commentary  upon  the  i6th 
verse  above :  "It  is  not  of  him  that  willeth,  nor 
of  him  that  rUnneth,  but  of  God  that  sheweth 
mercy."  These  Gentiles  who  have  attained  to 
righteousness  have  not  attained  thereto  through 
their  own  willing,  or  their  own  running,  but 
through  the  sovereign,  elective  grace  of  God. 

(2)  "But  Israel,  following  after  a  law  of 
righteousness,  did  not  arrive  at  that  law"  (31, 
R.  v.).  Here  was  a  nation  pursuing  after  a  law 
of  righteousness  and  failing  in  the  pursuit.    They 


142  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

said,  when  the  covenant  of  law  was  proposed  to 
them,  "All  that  Jehovah  hath  spoken  we  will  do" 
(Ex.  19:8). 

(3) "Wherefore?  Because  they  sought  it 
not  by  faith,  but  as  it  were  by  the  works  of  the 
law"  (32).  The  loth  chapter  takes  up  this  sub- 
ject and  works  it  out  in  detail,  showing  the  differ- 
ence between  "the  righteousness  which  is  of  the 
law"  and  "the  righteousness  which  is  of  faith" 
(compare  Rom.  10:5,  6).  Chrysostom  and 
others  think  that,  in  these  final  verses  of  the  chap- 
ter, there  is  a  solution  of  the  whole  doctrinal 
difficulty  raised  by  the  chapter,  but  Alford  dis- 
sents from  these,  and  says : 

"This  solution  is  simply  in  the  creative  right  of  God, 
as  declared  in  v.  18;— but  they  are  a  commefit  on  v.  16, 
that  it  is  not  of  him  that  willeth,  nor  of  him  that 
runneth:  the  same  similitude  of  running  being  here  re- 
sumed, and  it  being  shown  that,  so  far  from  man's  run- 
ning having  decided  the  matter,  the  Jews,  who  pressed 
forward  to  the  goal,  attained  not,  whereas  the  Gentiles, 
who  never  ran,  have  attained.  If  this  is  lost  sight  of, 
the  connection  of  the  whole  is  much  impaired,  and,  from 
doctrinal  prejudice,  a  wholly  wrong  turn  given  to  the 
apostle's  line  of  reasoning, — who  resolves  the  awful  fact 
of  Israel's  exclusion  not  into  any  causes  arising  from 
man,  but  into  the  supreme  will  of  God." 

Stifler  says: 

"It  is  at  this  point  that  Paul  passes  from  the  sov- 
ereignty of  God  to  the  responsibility  of  man.  The 
two  cannot  be  harmonized  in  the  human  understanding, 
except  as  the  Scriptures  harmonize  them;  that  is,  by 
insisting  on  and  holding  to  both.     The  Scriptures  and 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    143 

reason  assert  the  absolute  sovereignty  of  God,  and 
Scripture  and  the  human  conscience  assert  with  equal 
force  the  responsibility  of  man;  so  that  the  practical 
error  arises  when  either  one  of  these  is  denied  or  when 
one  is  explained  in  a  way  to  exclude  the  other.  It  must 
also  be  remembered  that,  while  man  cannot  save  him- 
self, moral  inability  does  not  relieve  from  responsibility. 
Man's  inability  lies  in  his  sinful  nature  (8:7),  and  God 
cannot  be  made  responsible  for  sin.  The  sinner's  ina- 
bility to  do  right,  to  do  God's  will,  is  the  acme  of  his 
sin.  A  world  of  sin  is  a  world  of  confusion.  Sin  intro- 
duced confusion  between  God  and  man,  and  confusion 
cannot  be  explained.  The  real  difficulty  between  God's 
absolute  sovereignty  and  man's  responsibility  is  meta- 
physical and  not  Biblical.  How  can  there  be  one  sov- 
ereign free  will  and  other  free  wills?  And  when 
Fritzsche  says  that  Paul's  view  is  'absolutely  contra- 
dictory,' he  is  virtually  demanding  that  Paul  cease 
preaching  and  turn  philosopher  to  solve  the  insoluble. 
But  Paul  leaves  the  question  where  he  found  it,  and 
goes  on  now  in  this  and  the  next  chapter  to  show  that 
Israel's  failure  was  their  own  fault." 

(4)  "They  stumbled  at  that  stumbling- 
stone"  (32).  The  word  *'for,"  found  here  in 
the  King  James  Version,  is  omitted  by  the  best 
authorities,  and  confuses  the  sense,  making  it  ap- 
pear that  Israel  had  failed  to  pursue  by  faith  be- 
cause of  their  stumbling  over  the  stumblingstone, 
which  of  course  is  Christ.  Now,  the  fact  is  just 
the  opposite  from  this.  They  stumbled  at  the 
stumblingstone  because  they  were  not  pursuing 
righteousness  by  faith  (compare  i  Cor.  1:23). 
As  the  R.  V.  footnote  has  it,  "Because  doing  it 
not  by  faith,  but  as  it  were  by  works,  they  stum- 
bled." 


144  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

(5)  "As  it  is  written,  Behold,  I  lay  in  Sion 
a  stumblingstone  and  rock  of  offence:  and 
whosoever  believeth  on  Him  shall  not  be 
ashamed"  (33).  The  quotation  is  from  Isa.  28: 
16.  Peter  uses  the  same  Scripture  in  i  Pet.  2: 
6,  along  with  other  Scriptures  employing  the 
same  figure  of  Christ  (compare  Ps.  118:22  and 
Isa.  8:  14). 

This  chapter  is  a  test  of  faith,  and  a  reasona- 
ble test.  Faith  trusts  God.  She  believes  that 
God  is  not  only  omnipotent,  that  is,  all-powerful, 
but  also  all-wise  and  altogether  righteous.  She 
believes  this  in  spite  of  everything,  and  to  her 
the  suggestion  is  intolerable  that  the  Judge  of  all 
the  earth  should  ever  fail  to  do  right.  She  reads 
in  God's  Word,  that  He  hardeneth  whom  He  will, 
and  also  that  God  is  not  willing  that  any  should 
perish.  These  things  may  be  irreconcilable  to 
human  reason,  and  they  probably  are,  but  human 
reason  has  no  authority  over  faith.  Faith  be- 
lieves God. 

In  the  very  nature  of  the  case,  it  is  of  necessity 
that  finite  man  should  fail  at  some  point  to  com- 
prehend the  infinite  God.  Faith  follows  on, 
walking  with  God,  even  when  reason  fails  to 
comprehend.  Faith  trusts  God  in  the  dark. 
That  is,  after  reason  has  entered  into  darkness 
and  obscurity,  faith  goes  on,  walking  not  in  dark- 
ness, but  in  the  light  of  God,  because  she  trusts 
God.  Otherwise,  faith  need  not  be  at  all,  for  to 
walk  by  faith  is  essentially  opposed  to  walking  by 


THB  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     145 

sight.  When  sight  comes  in,  there  is  no  further 
need  for  faith.  Let  us  thank  God  for  the  privi- 
lege of  trusting  Him,  and  of  walking  quietly  with 
Him,  leaving  our  hand  in  His,  for,  though  we 
may  not  know,  it  is  always  true  that  He  knoweth 
the  way  that  we  take. 

n.  Israel's  Rejection  Is  the  Result  of  Is- 
rael's Failure  (Chapter  10). 

1.  "Brethren,  my  heart's  desire  and  prayer 
to  God  for  Israel  is,  that  they  might  be  saved" 
(i).  Paul's  expression  of  affection  here  is  very 
strong.  Rotherham  renders  it,  "Brethren !  the 
delight  of  my  own  heart  and  my  supplication 
God-ward  in  their  behalf  are  for  salvation." 

2.  "For  I  bear  them  record  that  they  have  a 
zeal  of  God,  but  not  according  to  knowledge" 
(2).  The  zeal  is  for  God  rather  than  of  God 
(see  R.  v.).  They  were  zealous  for  God,  but 
their  zeal  was  not  based  upon  correct  knowledge 
of  God. 

3.  "For  they  being  ignorant  of  God's  right- 
eousness, and  going  about  to  establish  their 
own  righteousness,  have  not  submitted  them- 
selves unto  the  righteousness  of  God"  (3).  It 
was  because  of  their  ignorance  of  God's  right- 
eousness that  they  sought  to  establish  their  own. 
Had  they  known  the  meaning  of  righteousness 
from  God's  viewpoint  they  would  not  have  ad- 
mitted such  a  thing. 

4.  "For  Christ  is  the  end  of  the  law  for  right- 
eousness  to   every   one   that   believeth'*    (4). 


146  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

This  verse  explains  the  meaning  of  the  closing 
words  of  the  preceding  verse.  Their  failure  to 
submit  themselves  unto  the  righteousness  of  God 
consisted  in  their  rejection  of  the  Lord  Jesus, 
v^ho  is  The  Righteousness  of  God,  and  *'the  end 
of  the  law  for  righteousness  to  every  one  that  be- 
lieveth."  The  promise  is  written  large  in  the 
Old  Testament  Scriptures,  that  one  day  Israel 
shall  receive  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  and  salute 
Him  as  "THE  LORD  OUR  RIGHTEOUS- 
NESS" (Jer.  23 :  6).  This  will  be  in  the  day  of 
the  fulfillment  unto  them  of  the  new  covenant 
(Jer.  31 :  31-34 ;  compare  Heb.  8:8-12  and  Rom. 
11:25-27). 

5.  "The  righteousness  which  is  of  the  law" 
(5).  Moses's  description  of  this  legal  righteous- 
ness is,  of  course,  "That  the  man  which  doeth 
those  things  shall  live  by  them."  This  is  the 
first  Old  Testament  citation  in  the  chapter.  It  is 
from  Lev.  18:  5. 

6.  "The  righteousness  which  is  of  faith"  (6). 
In  this  verse,  reference  is  had  to  a  passage  in 
Deut.  30:  12-14.  This  is  not  because  gospel- 
righteousness  is  found  in  that  passage,  but  the 
passage  serves  to  illustrate  the  perfectly  plain 
statement  of  gospel-righteousness.  The  word  of 
the  new  covenant  is  as  clear  and  as  comprehensi- 
ble as  was  the  plain  command  uttered  by  Jehovah 
through  Moses  unto  Israel  in  the  wilderness.  It 
is  not  needful  that  any  one  should  ascend  into 
heaven  to  bring  Christ  down  from  above,  nor 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     147 

into  the  deep  to  bring  Him  up  again  from  the 
dead  (vs.  6,  7).  The  word  of  the  gospel  "is 
nigh  thee,  even  in  thy  mouth,  and  in  thy  heart: 
that  is,  the  word  of  faith,  which  we  preach"  (8)  : 
(i)  "That  if  thou  shalt  confess  with  thy 
mouth  the  Lord  Jesus"  (9).  This  is  a  needful 
condition  of  salvation  under  the  new  order  of 
things.  This  is  the  way  of  obtaining  "the  right- 
eousness which  is  of  faith." 

(2)  "And  shalt  believe  in  thine  heart  that 
God  hath  raised  him  from  the  dead"  (9). 
There  must  be  heart  belief.  Mr.  Rotherham 
points  out  that  the  contrast  in  this  passage  is  be- 
tween heart  and  mouth,  and  not  between  heart 
and  head — "a  distinction  of  which  the  Bible 
knows  nothing."  Doubtless  there  is  such  a  thing 
as  an  intellectual  assent,  even  to  the  proposition 
of  the  gospel,  which  falls  short  of  saving  faith. 
To  believe,  in  the  gospel  sense,  is  to  receive  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  one's  personal  Saviour,  and 
any  so-called  belief  which  falls  short  of  this  defi- 
nite reception  of  the  Saviour  is  not  New  Testa- 
ment faith.  "As  many  as  received  him,  to  them 
gave  he  power  to  become  the  sons  of  God,  even 
to  them  that  believe  on  his  name"  (Jno.  i :  12). 
Saving  faith  is  perhaps  better  understood  as  per- 
sonal trust  in  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  as  one's  own 
Saviour. 

(3)  "Thou  shalt  be  saved"  (9).  In  this 
verse  we  have  one  of  the  clearest  settings  forth 
of  the  gospel  to  be  found  anywhere  in  the  Scrip- 
tures. 


148  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

7.  "For  with  the  heart  man  believeth  unto 
righteousness ;  and  with  the  mouth  confession 
is  made  unto  salvation"  (10).  In  the  para- 
graph closing  with  this  verse  we  have  one  of  the 
most  important  statements  in  the  Bible.  Here 
the  Holy  Spirit  of  truth  brings  into  sharpest  con- 
trast the  two  righteousnesses.  One  is  God's 
righteousness  and  the  other  is  man's  righteous- 
ness. One  is  divine  and  the  other  is  human. 
One  is  by  works ;  it  comes  to  the  man  who  doeth. 
The  other  is  by  grace  through  faith — to  every 
one  that  believeth.  One  is  called  the  righteous- 
ness which  is  of  the  law.  The  other  is  called 
the  righteousness  which  is  of  faith.  One  is  the 
result  of  man's  own  efforts.  The  other  is  the 
gift  of  God  in  Christ  to  any  man  who  will  re- 
ceive it.  The  failure  of  Israel  is  the  matter  un- 
der discussion.  They,  being  ignorant  of  God's 
righteousness,  went  about  seeking  to  establish 
their  own  righteousness;  and  when  Christ,  the 
end  of  the  law  for  righteousness,  came  and  of- 
fered Himself  to  them,  they  refused  to  submit 
themselves  unto  Him.  The  principle  involved, 
however,  is  applicable  not  only  to  Jews.  It  is 
general,  and  applies  to  all  men,  Jews  and  Gentiles 
alike.  Seven  fundamental  propositions  may  be 
drawn  from  this  passage  of  Scripture.  This  is 
the  gospel  of  God.  In  this  sevenfold  statement 
He  gives  us  a  complete  unfolding  of  the  way  of 
life.  In  the  midst  of  the  awful  confusion  of 
these  last  days  it  is  refreshing  to  get  back  to  first 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     149 

principles  and  examine  the  foundations  upon 
which  we  are  building.  May  God  deliver  His 
people  from  error,  and  ever  show  us  His  way 
more  perfectly ! 

(i)  Man  by  nature  is  unrighteous.  Noth- 
ing is  more  strongly  emphasized  than  this  in  the 
Word  of  God.  Humiliating  to  the  flesh  though 
it  be,  it  is  nevertheless  true  that  man  is  naturally 
corrupt.  Theologians  may  quarrel  over  ques- 
tions of  ''original  sin"  and  ''total  depravity,"  but 
God  has  been  faithful  in  pointing  out  that  "the 
heart  is  deceitful  above  all  things  and  desperate- 
ly wicked"  (Jer.  17:9).  Out  of  the  heart  are 
the  issues  of  life,  and  "from  within,  out  of  the 
heart  of  men,  proceed  evil  thoughts,  adulteries, 
fornications,  murders,  thefts,  covetousness,  wick- 
edness, deceit,  lasciviousness,  an  evil  eye,  blas- 
phemy, pride,  foolishness:  all  these  evil  things 
come  from  within"  (Mk.  7 :  21-23) .  Man,  apart 
from  God,  is  unrighteous  and  only  unrighteous. 
This  is  shown  in  the  terible  history  of  the  race, 
as  given  by  the  Holy  Spirit  of  truth  in  Rom.  i. 
When  God  "gave  them  up,"  it  was  "unto  vile 
affections."  When  he  "gave  them  over,"  it  was 
"to  a  reprobate  mind,"  and  they  were  found  to 
be  "filled  with  all  unrighteousness"  (vs.  26,  28, 
29).  It  is  easy  for  men  to  "compare  themselves 
with  themselves,"  and  derive  satisfaction  from 
the  comparison,  but  God  declares  that  "there  is 
none  righteous,  no  not  one"  (Rom.  3:10). 
"There  is  no  difference,  for  all  have  sinned,  and 


150  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

come  short  of  the  glory  of  God"  (Rom.  3:22, 
23).  As  for  the  Jews,  "the  name  of  God  is  blas- 
phemed among  the  Gentiles  through"  them 
(Rom.  2:24).  As  to  the  Gentiles  themselves, 
they  are  ''without  Christ,  having  no  hope,  and 
without  God  in  the  world."  They  walk  *'in  the 
vanity  of  their  mind,  having  the  understanding 
darkened,  being  alienated  from  the  life  of  God 
through  the  ignorance  that  is  in  them  because  of 
the  blindness  of  their  heart."  They  are  "dead  in 
trespasses  and  sins,"  and  "past  feeling"  (Eph.  2: 
I,  12;  4:  17-19).  The  Scriptures  declare  that  the 
natural  man  "is  corrupt  according  to  the  deceitful 
lusts"  (Eph.  4:22);  that  his  mind  is  "enmity 
against  God,"  that  it  is  not  and  cannot  be  subject 
to  God's  law ;  and  that  he  "cannot  please  God" 
(Rom.  8 :  7,  8).  They  further  assert  that  he  can- 
not receive  "the  things  of  the  Spirit  of  God :  for 
they  are  foolishness  unto  him :  neither  can  he 
know  them,  because  they  are  spiritually  discerned" 
(i  Cor.  2  :  14).  Such,  according  to  the  Scriptures 
of  God,  is  the  helpless,  hopeless,  undone  condi- 
tion of  the  natural  man.  And  in  this  we  are  all 
alike — we  are  "by  nature  the  children  of  wrath, 
even  as  others"  (Eph.  2:3).  Man  by  nature  is 
unrighteous. 

(2)  Man  by  nature  is  ignorant  of  God's 
righteousness.  Man  is  corrupt,  and  he  has  a 
corrupt  mind.  Therefore,  his  view  of  righteous- 
ness is  distorted.  He  has  his  own  "ideas  of 
right  and  wrong,"  and  they  are  false  ideas.     For 


The  vindication  of  god's  way^.   151 

as  a*  matter  of  simple  fact,  the  righteousness  of 
God  is  the  only  kind  of  righteousness  there  is. 
In  this  discussion  we  have  spoken  of  two  right- 
eousnesses, but  we  shall  find  on  examination  that 
the  human  righteousness  here  spoken  of  is  not 
righteousness  at  all.  Righteousness  is  simple 
right-ness,  and  if  a  thing  is  right  it  cannot  be 
more.  On  the  other  hand  if  it  be  not  right  it  is 
of  necessity  wrong.  And  the  standard  of  right- 
eousness is  God's  righteousness.  He  is  abso- 
lutely righteous.  The  ways  of  the  Lord  are 
right.  God  is  light,  and  in  Him  is  no  darkness 
at  all.  In  Him  there  is  no  variableness,  neither 
shadow  of  turning.  God  cannot  lie,  because  He 
is  righteous.  He  cannot  repudiate  a  promise, 
because  He  is  righteous.  He  cannot  forget  His 
Word,  because  He  is  righteous.  But  God's 
standard  is  not  man's  standard.  The  character- 
istic distinction  between  God  and  man  is  that 
"God  is  not  a  man  that  He  should  lie"  (Num. 
23:19).  Man's  ideas  of  right  and  wrong  are 
low  ideas,  corrupt  ideas,  evil  ideas,  because  they 
are  conceived  in  corrupt  and  evil  minds.  Man's 
conception  of  God  is  distorted.  It  is  written  that 
"when  they  knew  God,  they  glorified  Him  not  as 
God."  They  conceived  that  God  was  like  them- 
selves. They  "changed  the  glory  of  the  incor- 
ruptible God  into  an  image  made  like  to  cor- 
ruptible man"  (Rom.  i :  21-23).  Having  there- 
fore corrupted  their  very  conception  of  the  char- 
acter of  God,  they  of  course  lost  the  true  view 


152  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

of  His  righteousness.  What  is  the  natural 
man's  idea  of  the  righteous  requirements  of  a 
holy  God?  Ask  the  first  man  you  meet,  and  he 
will  probably  tell  you  that  "if  a  man  tries  to  do 
right,  that  is  all  that  will  be  expected  of  him." 
Or  perhaps  he  will  say,  "If  I  do  the  best  I  can, 
God  will  be  satisfied."  Does  it  never  occur  to 
the  natural  man  that  in  these  very  words  he 
speaks  there  is  an  implied  admission  of  his  cor- 
rupt nature  ?  For,  according  to  these  replies,  he 
can  only  try  to  do  right:  he  rarely  succeeds. 
He  may  do  the  best  he  can,  but  of  course  what 
he  does  is  not  perfect.  But  the  point  here  is  that 
man  who  is  so  complacent  about  his  own  trying 
and  doing,  has  an  idea  that  God  is  complacent, 
too.  Man  says,  "Of  course,  we  are  all  sinners, 
and  all  we  can  do  is  to  do  the  best  we  can."  This 
satisfies  his  perverted  conscience,  and  he  thinks 
it  also  satisfies  God.  This  is  all  wrong.  God's 
demands  are  inflexible.  He  says  to  man,  "Walk 
before  me,  and  be  thou  perfect."  He  says,  "Be 
ye  holy,  for  I  am  holy."  And  His  declaration  is 
most  explicit  that  without  holiness  no  man  shall 
see  the  Lord.  And  though  holiness  and  right- 
eousness are  not  the  same  thing,  yet  there  cannot 
be  the  one  without  the  other.  God's  new  crea- 
tion is  "in  righteousness  and  true  holiness"  (Eph. 
4:  24).  All  this,  however,  is  unintelligible  to  the 
natural  man.  For  man  by  nature  is  ignorant  of 
God's  righteousness. 


THB  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     153 

(3)  Man  by  nature,  because  of  this  igno- 
rance, goes  about  to  establish  his  own  right- 
eousness. Of  course  he  would  never  try  such 
a  thing  if  he  had  any  real  appreciation  of  what  he 
was  attempting.  If  he  realized  how  high  God's 
righteousness  is,  and  then  realized  how  low  his 
own  "ideas  of  right  and  wrong"  are,  he  would 
give  up  at  once,  and  be  ready  to  wait  for  the 
grace  of  God.  But  it  is  not  so.  From  the  days 
of  Cain  until  now,  the  natural  man  has  sought  to 
make  himself  presentable  to  God.  The  carnal 
mind  is  proud,  and  it  rebels  against  the  truth  of 
God.  Even  when  the  truth  is  apprehended,  man 
holds  it  down  in  unrighteousness  (Rom.  i :  18, 
R.  v.).  The  Scriptures  declare  that  "that  which 
may  be  known  of  God  (i.  e.,  to  the  natural  man) 
is  manifest  in  them,.  . .  .so  that  they  are  without 
excuse."  God  has  not  left  Himself  without  wit- 
ness even  among  unregenerate  men,  but  they 
have  turned  from  Him :  "they  did  not  like  to  re- 
tain God  in  their  knowledge"  (Rom.  i:  19,  20, 
28).  So  it  is  that  men,  having  "rejected  the 
counsel  of  God  against  themselves,"  are  continu- 
ally seeking  to  establish  a  righteousness  of  their 
own.  Instead  of  consulting  the  Word  of  the 
living  God,  they  consult  their  own  consciences — 
i.  e.,  their  own  corrupt  "ideas  of  right  and 
wrong."  The  unenlightened  conscience  is  a  most 
elastic  thing,  besides  being  corrupt,  and  the  more 
it  is  Hstened  to,  apart  from  the  testimony  of  the 
Word  of  God,  the  more  accommodating  it  be- 


154  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

comes;  until  finally,  instead  of  accusing,  it  ex- 
cuses almost  any  act  of  evil.  It  becomes  not  only 
defiled  and  polluted — it  is  all  that  by  nature — 
but  it  becomes  also  seared  as  with  a  hot  iron  (i 
Tim.  4:2).  Man  by  nature,  because  he  is  igno- 
rant of  God's  righteousness,  goes  about  to  estab- 
lish his  own  righteousness. 

(4)  The  only  conceivable  way  for  the  natural 
man  to  establish  his  own  righteousness  is  by 
means  of  his  own  works.  This  goes  without  say- 
ing. If  I  am  to  have  a  righteousness  of  my  own 
"establishing,"  it  must  be  the  result  of  my  own 
good  works.  This  was  the  method  put  to  the  test 
in  the  case  of  Israel.  The  righteousness  which 
is  of  the  law  had  only  this  word  :  ''The  man  which 
doeth  those  things  shall  live  by  them."  Not  try- 
ing, mark  you !  but  doing.  And  not  "doing  the 
best  we  can,"  but  doing  those  things.  The  natu- 
ral man  has  an  idea  that  his  good  deeds  and  his 
evil  deeds  are  to  be  weighed  in  a  balance ;  and  if 
the  good  weigh  more  than  the  evil,  then  "every- 
thing will  be  all  right."  His  case  would  be  bad 
enough  even  then;  but  that  is  not  the  method. 
Far  from  it !  In  the  law,  God  said  to  Israel : 
"Thou  shalt  love  the  Lord  thy  God  with  all  thy 
heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with  all  thy 
might,"  and,  "Thou  shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as 
thyself."  This  has  been  called  "the  concept  of  the 
mind  of  God."  Well,  at  least  it  is  "the  concept  of 
the  mind  of  God  as  to  what  man  ought  to  be ;"  it 
is  God's  "idea  of  right  and  wrong."  It  is  a  state- 


THB  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     i55 

ment  of  God's  righteousness,  the  righteousness 
of  God.  There  is  nothing  arbitrary  about  it.  God 
demanded  of  Israel  only  that  which  was  right,  or 
righteous.     It  was  their  duty,  even  before  He  is- 
sued the  law,  to  love  God  supremely,  and  their 
neighbours  as  themselves.    It  follows,  therefore, 
that  if  the  people  of  Israel  were  to  establish  their 
own  righteousness,  they  could  do  it  only  by  doing 
those  things.     There  was  no  other  possible  way. 
And  the  same  principle  obtains  with  men  every- 
where and  always.     The  Gentiles,  though  they 
have  not  the  law,  are  yet  bound  by  the  same  prin- 
ciple of  righteousness  as  that  contained  in  the 
law.     As  it  is  written,  "They  show  the  work  of 
the  law  written  in  their  hearts"  (Rom.  2 :  14,  15). 
It  is  their  duty,  as  much  as  Israel's,  to  do  right. 
And  to  do  right  means  to  do  righteously.     They, 
as  well  as  Israel,  are  bound  to  love  God  supreme- 
ly, and  their  neighbours  as  themselves.     If  they 
are  to  establish  their  own  righteousness,  this  is 
the  only  way  to  do  it.     It  is  true  universally  that 
only  he  that  doeth  those  things  shall  live  by  them. 
The  only  conceivable  way  for  the  natural  man  to 
establish  his  own  righteousness  is  by  means  of  his 
own  works. 

(5)  But  it  is  impossible  for  any  man  thus 
to  establish  his  own  righteousness.  We  have 
seen  that  the  only  conceivable  way  for  the 
natural  man  to  establish  his  own  righteousness  is 
by  means  of  his  own  good  works.  But  what  if  he 
is  incapable  of  good  works?    What  then?    Ah, 


156  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

then  is  his  case  a  hopeless  one,  indeed.  And  is 
not  this  the  true  state  of  the  case?  If  it  be  true 
that  man  by  nature  is  unrighteous,  how  then  can 
he  do  a  righteous  act?  "Who  can  bring  a  clean 
thing  out  of  an  unclean?  Not  one!"  (Job  14: 
4).  "Can  the  Ethiopian  change  his  skin,  or  the 
leopard  his  spots?  Then  may  ye  also  do  good, 
that  are  accustomed  to  do  evil"  (Jer.  13:23). 
Man  may  do  things  which  he  considers  righteous, 
but  in  God's  sight  "we  are  all  as  an  unclean  thing, 
and  all  our  righteousnesses  are  as  filthy  rags'* 
(Isa.  64:6).  "There  is  a  way  which  seemeth 
right  unto  a  man,  but  the  end  thereof  are  the 
ways  of  death"  (Prov.  14:12).  "The  Lord 
seeth  not  as  man  seeth ;  for  man  looketh  on  the 
outward  appearance,  but  the  Lord  looketh  on  the 
heart"  (i  Sam.  16:  i).  In  the  days  before  the 
flood,  men  supposed  they  were  making  great 
progress.  "There  were  giants  in  the  earth  in 
those  days."  There  were  "mighty  men  which 
were  of  old,  men  of  renown."  But  what  God 
thought  of  the  matter  was  a  far  different  thing. 
"God  saw  that  the  wickedness  of  man  was  great 
in  the  earth,  and  that  every  imagination  of  the 
thoughts  of  his  heart  was  only  evil  continually" 
(Gen.  6:4,  5).  The  end  of  all  flesh  came  before 
God  in  that  day,  and  never  to  this  present  time 
has  God  put  any  confidence  in  the  flesh.  The 
flesh,  corrupt  then,  is  corrupt  now,  and  its  works 
— the  doings  of  the  natural  man — "are  manifest, 
which  are  these :    adultery,  fornication,  unclean- 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     i57 

ness,  lasciviousness,  idolatry,  witchcraft,  hatred, 
variance,  emulations,  wrath,  strife,  seditions, 
heresies,  envyings,  murders,  drunkenness,  rev- 
ellings,  and  such  like"  (Gal.  5:19-21).  Now, 
how  can  righteousness  come  from  such  a  source  ? 
When  the  fountain  is  poisoned,  how  can  the 
stream  be  pure?  What  can  the  law  of  God, 
which  is  holy  and  righteous  and  good,  do  for 
the  natural  man,  who  is  unholy  and  unrighteous 
and  evil?  Surely,  it  cannot  produce  righteous- 
ness in  him.  It  can  only  condemn  him  and  show 
him  his  helplessness.  And  this  is  the  very  pur- 
pose of  the  law.  When  it  speaks,  every  mouth  is 
stopped,  and  all  the  world  is  brought  in  guilty 
before  God.  By  the  deeds  of  the  law  no  flesh  is 
justified  in  God's  sight,  for  by  the  law  is  the 
knowledge  of  sin  (Rom.  3:  20,  21).  The  law 
of  Moses,  the  ten  commandments,  "written  and 
engraven  in  stones,"  is  not  a  ministration  of 
life,  but  of  death.  It  is  not  a  ministration  of 
righteousness  but  of  condemnation  (2  Cor.  3:9). 
Let  us  remember  that  the  law  is  an  inflexible 
thing.  It  demands  a  flawless  life  of  perfect  obe- 
dience from  the  cradle  to  the  grave.  It  brooks 
no  slightest  disobedience.  If  man  keeps  the 
whole  law  and  stumbles  in  one  point,  he  is  guilty 
of  all  (Jas.  2:  10).  It  is  not  enough  to  ''try  to 
be  good."  It  will  not  do  to  "try  to  do  right." 
It  will  not  suflice  to  have  done  "the  best  we 
could."  If  a  man  is  establishing  his  own  right- 
eousness, why,  then,  let  him^do  it.    But  the  Word 


158  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

of  God  will  never  call  wrong  by  the  name  of 
right ;  it  will  never  call  evil  good.  Now,  where 
is  our  natural  man ?  Is  he  justified?  Far  from 
it!  He  is  cursed.  As  the  Scripture  saith,  "As 
many  as  are  of  the  works  of  the  law  are  under 
the  curse :  for  it  is  written,  Cursed  is  every  one 
that  continueth  not  in  all  things  which  are  writ- 
ten in  the  book  of  the  law  to  do  them.  But  that 
no  man  is  justified  by  the  law  in  the  sight  of  God, 
it  is  evident:  for,  The  just  shall  live  by  faith. 
And  the  law  is  not  of  faith :  but.  The  man  that 
doeth  them  shall  live  in  them"  (Gal.  3:  10-12). 
Thus  it  is  seen  that  it  is  impossible  for  any  man 
to  establish  his  own  righteousness. 

(6)  On  the  other  hand,  to  obtain  the  gift 
of  God's  righteousness  in  Christ  is  possible 
for  every  man.  Whosoever  will  may  come. 
The  gift  is  for  anyone  who  will  have  it.  As 
there  is  no  difiference  in  God's  sight  between  sin- 
ners, so  there  is  no  difference  in  respect  of  those 
invited.  It  is  true  that  righteousness  is  not  at- 
tainable by  law-works,  "but  now  the  righteous- 
ness of  God  apart  from  the  law  is  manifested, 
being  witnessed  by  the  law  and  the  prophets; 
even  the  righteousness  of  God  which  is  by  faith 
of  Jesus  Christ  unto  all  and  upon  all  them  that 
believe:  for  there  is  no  difference"  (Rom.  3:  21, 
22).  Not  one  member  of  the  human  race  is  ex- 
cluded. White  or  black,  rich  or  poor ;  whatever 
you  are,  whoever  you  are,  wherever  you  are ;  no 
matter  how  sinful,  no  matter  how  vile,  no  matter 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     159 

what  you  have  done,  no  matter  what  your  record 
— "God  so  loved  the  world  that  He  gave  His  only 
begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  believeth  in  Him 
should  not  perish,  but  have  everlasting  life" 
(Jno.  3:16).  "He  is  the  propitiation  for  our 
sins :  and  not  for  ours  only,  but  also  for  the  sins 
of  the  whole  world  (i  Jno.  2:2).  He  is  "the 
living  God,  Who  is  the  Saviour  of  all  men"  ( i 
Tim.  4:  10).  Hallelujah,  what  a  Saviour!  "Be- 
hold, the  Lamb  of  God,  Which  taketh  away  the 
sin  of  the  world !"  Think  of  it !  God's  right- 
eusness,  offered  to  every  man!  The  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  the  end  of  the  law  for  righteousness 
when  He  died  on  Calvary,  tasted  death  for  every 
man  (Heb.  2:9).  No  man  will  be  able  to  plead 
that  he  was  omitted  from  the  great  provision  of 
salvation.  The  Lamb  of  God  is  the  Saviour  of 
all  men.  "All  we  like  sheep  have  gone  astray; 
we  have  turned  every  one  to  his  own  way;  and 
the  Lord  hath  laid  on  Him  the  iniquity  of  us  all." 
This  text  (Isa.  53:6)  opens  and  closes  with  the 
big-little  word  "all."  It  is  like  a  door,  placed  at 
each  end  of  the  text.  If  you  are  included  in  the 
former  all,  you  are  also  included  in  the  latter  all. 
All  includes  everybody.  As  the  little  boy  said  of 
the  like  word,  whosoever,  "it  means  you,  or  me, 
or  anybody  else."  And  He  died  for  all.  He 
died,  for  you,  and  me,  and  everybody  else.  He 
"died  for  all,  therefore  all  died ;  and  He  died  for 
all,  that  they  that  live  should  no  longer  live  unto 
themselves,  but  unto  Him  Who  for  their  sakes 


i6o  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

died  and  rose  again"  (2  Cor.  5:14,  15).  He 
died  for  you.  Whoever  you  are  He  died  for 
you.  True,  He  died  for  others,  but  He  died  for 
you.  If  He  had  not  died  in  your  room  and 
stead;  if  He  had  not  died  for  you — for  you — 
then  you  must  needs  perish  for  your  sins.  But 
He  died  for  you  that  He  might  bring  you  to  God 
— the  living  God,  the  giving  God,  Who  waits  for 
you  to  come  to  Him,  that  you  might  not  perish 
but  have  everlasting  Hfe.  He  died  for  you! 
He  died  for  me!  Blessed  be  His  holy  name! 
For  me !  I  must  die  if  He  had  not — but  He  died 
for  me — and  now  I  have  His  promise  that  I  shall 
never  perish:  that  I  shall  never  be  plucked  out 
of  His  hands :  that  I  am  accepted  in  the  Beloved, 
that  I  am  called,  beloved  in  God  the  Father,  and 
kept  for  Jesus  Christ.  Hallelujah!  He  died 
for  me !  He  died  for  everybody  else !  Every- 
body! Everybody!  From  Adam  down  to  the 
last  man  in  the  human  race,  He  died  for  them 
all.  Before  He  died,  many  had  been  saved  by 
faith  in  the  Coming  One;  and  since  His  death 
many  have  been  saved  by  faith  in  the  One  Who 
came  and  died.  He  died  for  them  all.  But 
many  were  lost,  before  Calvary,  and  after.  Yet 
He  died  for  them.  All  their  iniquities  were  laid 
upon  Him.  If  they  were  lost,  it  was  not  His 
fault.  If  they  went  down  to  perdition,  it  was  in 
spite  of  all  He  did  for  them.  He  died  for  them. 
He  died  for  you,  and  me,  and  everybody  else. 
To  obtain  the  gift  of  God's  righteousness  in 
Christ  is  possible  for  every  man. 


THE  VINDICATION  'OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     i6i 

(7)  God's  way  of  bestowing  His  right- 
eousness upon  unrighteous  man  is  by  grace 
through  faith.  We  have  seen  man's  helpless- 
ness to  attain  to  righteousness  by  means  of  law- 
works.  The  law  could  show  him  the  need  of 
righteousness;  it  could  show  him  what  right- 
eousness was.  But  it  could  go  no  further.  It 
could  not  make  him  righteous;  it  could  not 
produce  righteousness  in  him.  But  God, 
through  the  gospel  of  Christ,  has  met  man's  need 
just  here.  '*For  what  the  law  could  not  do,  in 
that  it  was  weak  through  the  flesh,  God  sending 
His  own  Son  in  the  likeness  of  sinful  flesh,  and 
for  sin,  condemned  sin  in  the  flesh :  that  the 
righteousness  of  the  law  might  be  fulfilled  in  us, 
who  walk  not  after  the  flesh  but  after  the  Spirit" 
(Rom.  8:3,  4).  What  the  law  could  not  do, 
God  did.  But  it  had  to  be  by  grace,  which  is  un- 
merited favor.  Man  could  never  have  earned 
such  a  boon  as  the  righteousness  of  God.  He 
could  not  have  deserved  it.  He  deserved  death, 
for  that  is  the  wages  of  sin.  "But  God,  who  is 
rich  in  mercy,  for  His  great  love  wherewith  He 
loved  us,  even  when  we  were  dead  in  sins,  hath 
quickened  us  together  with  Christ  (by  grace  ye 
are  saved)  ;  and  hath  raised  us  up  together,  and 
made  us  sit  together  in  heavenly  places  in  Christ* 
Jesus :  that  in  the  ages  to  come  He  might  show 
the  exceeding  riches  of  His  grace  in  His  kindness 
toward  us  through  Christ  Jesus.  For  by  grace 
are  ye  saved  through  faith ;  and  that  not  of  your- 


i62  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

selves :  it  is  the  gift  of  God :  not  of  works,  lest 
any  man  should  boast"  (Eph.  2:4-9).  And  the 
gift  by  grace  is  through  faith.  As  it  is  written, 
"it  is  of  faith,  that  it  might  be  by  grace"  (Rom. 
4:  16).  It  is  not  a  hard  thing  that  is  asked  of 
man.  No  man  may  say  in  his  heart,  Christ  must 
again  be  brought  down  from  above,  or  up  from 
the  deep.  The  word  is  nigh  us,  even  in  our 
mouth  and  in  our  heart.  We  have  only  to  re- 
ceive God's  perfect  salvation,  already  wrought 
out  and  finished.  It  is  all  very  simple.  *'If  thou 
shalt  confess  with  thy  mouth  Jesus  as  Lord,  and 
shalt  believe  in  thy  heart  that  God  hath  raised 
Him  from  the  dead,  thou  shalt  be  saved."  Noth- 
ing could  be  clearer;  nothing  more  beautiful. 
"With  the  heart  man  believeth  unto  righteous- 
ness, and  with  the  mouth  confession  is  made  unto 
salvation."  What  a  wonderful  gospel!  "The 
gift  of  God  is  eternal  life,  through  Jesus  Christ 
our  Lord."  Eternal  life,  mind  you!  Not  tem- 
poral, but  eternal.  Not  temporary,  but  perpetual. 
Eternal !  Everlasting !  Not  something  you  get 
now  and  lose  after  a  while.  Not  that,  but  life, 
life,  eternal  life.  The  Good  Shepherd,  just  be- 
fore giving  His  life  for  the  sheep,  said,  "My 
sheep  hear  My  voice,  and  I  know  them,  and  they 
.follow  Me:  and  I  give  unto  them  eternal  life; 
and  they  shall  never  perish,  neither  shall  anyone 
pluck  them  out  of  My  hand.  My  Father,  which 
gave  them  Me,  is  greater  than  all;  and  no  one 
is  able  to  pluck  out  of  My  Father's  hand.     I  and 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     163 

My  Father  are  one"  (Jno.  10:27-30).  There 
are  many  persons  in  the  world  who  will  tell  you 
they  were  once  Christians,  "but  not  now."  Sure- 
ly, they  could  never  have  received  the  gift  of 
God,  which  is  eternal  life.  Eternal  life  is  ever- 
lasting— it  lasts  for  ever!  No,  Christ  does  not 
suffer  His  sheep  to  perish.  He  is  not  a  man 
that  He  should  lie ;  and  His  own  word  is,  "they 
shall  never  perish."  The  gift  is  by  faith.  It  is 
unto  all  and  upon  all  that  believe.  And  to  be- 
lieve, Scripturally,  is  to  receive  the  Lord  Jesus 
as  one's  personal  Saviour.  *'He  came  unto  His 
own,  and  His  own  received  him  not.  But  as 
many  as  received  him,  to  them  gave  He  power  to 
become  the  sons  of  God,  even  to  them  that  be- 
lieve on  His  name"  (Jno.  i:  11,  12).  He  that 
thus  believeth  is  not  condemned :  but  he  that  be- 
lieveth  not  is  condemned  already,  not  because  he 
is  a  sinner,  but  "because  he  hath  not  believed 
in  the  name  of  the  only  begotten  Son  of  God" 
(Jno.  3:  18).  Do  you  ask  what  you  are  to  be- 
lieve? The  answer  is.  You  must  believe  God. 
"If  we  receive  the  witness  of  men,  the  witness 
of  God  is  greater :  for  this  is  the  witness  of  God 
which  He  hath  testified  of  His  Son.  He  that 
believeth  on  the  Son  of  God  hath  the  witness  in 
himself.  He  that  believeth  not  God  hath  made 
Him  a  liar ;  because  he  believeth  not  the  record 
that  God  gave  of  His  Son.  And  this  is  the 
record :  That  God  hath  given  to  us  eternal  life, 
and  this  life  is  in  His  Son.     He  that  hath  the 


i64  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Son  hath  life;  and  he  that  hath  not  the 
Son  of  God  hath  not  life"  (i  Jno.  5:9-12). 
May  God  Himself  help  all  who  read  these  words 
to  believe  Him!  For  to  beHeve  Him  is  to  ob- 
tain His  gift  of  eternal  life,  which  is  in  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord.  God's  way  of  bestowing  His 
righteousness  upon  unrighteous  man  is  by  grace 
through  faith.  "How  shall  we  escape,  if  we 
neglect  so  great  salvation  ?" 

8.  "For  the  Scripture  saith"  (n).  From 
this  point  in  the  chapter  the  writer's  purpose  is 
evidently  the  same  as  in  chapter  4,  namely,  to 
show  that  this  gospel-righteousness  is  no  new 
thing;  that  this  justification  by  faith  has  always 
been  God's  way  of  salvation.  On  this  point  sev- 
eral proof-texts  are  gathered  from  the  Old  Tes- 
tament: "For  the  Scripture  saith,  Whosoever 
beheveth  on  Him  shall  not  be  put  to  shame  (com- 
pare Isa.  28:16).  For  there  is  no  distinction 
between  Jew  and  Greek:  for  the  same  Lord  is 
Lord  of  all,  and  is  rich  unto  all  that  call  upon 
him :  for,  Whosoever  shall  call  upon  the  name  of 
the  Lord  shall  be  saved"  (vs.  11-13,  R.  V.,  com- 
pare Joel  2:32). 

9.  "How  then  shall  they  call  on  Him  in 
Whom  they  have  not  believed?"  (14)  At  this 
point  the  inspired  writer  anticipates  an  objection, 
and  again  he  sets  up  the  imaginary  opponent  who 
puts  these  queries : 

"How  then  shall  they  call  on  Him  in  Whom  they  have 
not  believed?    and  how  shall  they  believe  in  Him  of 


THE  VINDICATION  OP  GOD'S  WAYS.     165 

Whom  they  have  not  heard?  and  how  shall  they  hear 
without  a  preacher?  and  how  shall  they  preach,  except 
they  be  sent?  as  it  is  written,  How  beautiful  are  the 
feet  of  them  that  preach  the  gospel  of  peace,  and  bring 
glad  tidings  of  good  things !  (Isa.  52  :  7).  But  they  have 
not  all  obeyed  the  gospel.  For  Esaias  saith,  Lord,  who 
hath  believed  our  report?  (Isa.  53:1).  So  then  faith 
cometh  by  hearing,  and  hearing  by  the  Word  of  God." 

10.  "But  I  say,  Have  they  not  heard?"  (18). 
The  imaginary  opponent  having  availed  himself 
of  Old  Testament  quotations  also,  in  an  attempt 
to  thrust  back  upon  God  the  responsibility  for  Is- 
rael's failure,  the  apostle  replies  in  the  passage 
beginning  at  the  i8th  verse.  We  quote  from  the 
Revision  here : 

"But  I  say,  Did  they  not  hear?  Yea,  verily.  Their 
sound  went  out  into  all  the  earth,  and  their  words  unto 
the  ends  of  the  world   (Ps.  19:4). 

"But  I  say.  Did  Israel  not  know?  First  Moses  saith, 
I  will  provoke  you  to  jealousy  with  that  which  is  no 
nation,  with  a  nation  void  of  understanding  will  I  anger 
you  (Deut.  32:  21). 

"And  Isaiah  is  very  bold,  and  saith,  I  was  found  of 
them  that  sought  Me  not ;  I  became  manifest  unto  them 
that  asked  not  of  Me  (Isa.  65:  i). 

"But  as  to  Israel  He  saith.  All  the  day  long  did  I 
spread  out  My  hands  unto  a  disobedient  and  gainsaying 
people"  (Isa.  65:2). 

Here  are  more  quotations  from  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, all  tending  to  show  that  God  had  warned 
His  chosen  people.  The  first  quotation  is  from 
the  19th  Psalm,  and  the  Holy  Spirit's  purpose  in 
referring  to  it  is  to  show  that  even  where  the 


i66  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

message  of  God  has  not  been  carried  by  personal 
messengers,  God  has  not  left  Himself  without 
witness.  Indeed,  the  entire  Psalm  is  written  to 
prove  precisely  that  thing. 

Nature  itself  reveals  God  to  man.  And  that 
revelation  is  sufficient  to  make  man  responsible 
to  God.  Enough  of  God  is  revealed  to  man — 
every  man — to  make  it  his  duty  to  worship  the 
Maker  of  heaven  and  earth  acording  to  the  meas- 
ure of  that  revelation.  The  revelation  through 
nature  is  not  a  small  revelation ;  it  is  not,  as  has 
been  said,  "the  dim  light  of  nature."  God  de- 
clares that  by  it  the  invisible  things  of  Him  "are 
clearly  seen,"  even  His  eternal  power  and  divin- 
ity, "so  that  they  are  without  excuse"  (Rom.  i : 
20). 

"The  heavens  declare  the  glory  of  God ; 

The  skies  show  forth  the  work  of  His  hands. 
Day  unto  day  is  pouring  out  speech, 

And  night  unto  night  breathing  knowledge. 
Without  speech  and  without  language, 

Without  their  voice  being  heard, 
Into  all  the  earth  their  sound  goes  forth. 
To  the  end  of  the  world  their  words." 

(Ps.  19:  1-4,  De  Witt's  rendering.) 

This  Scripture  from  Ps.  19  bears  with  crush- 
ing force  upon  the  people  of  Israel.  Surely,  if 
the  Gentile  nations  were  held  responsible  before 
God,  how  much  more  the  nation  of  Israel !  The 
oracles  of  God  had  been  committed  to  them. 
They    were    doubly    responsible.     Furthermore, 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    167 

they  had  been  repeatedly  warned  that  if  they  con- 
tinued to  despise  the  Word  of  God,  it  should  go 
to  the  Gentiles.  The  quotations  from  Moses  and 
Isaiah,  cited  above,  are  sufficient  proof  of  this. 
"Where  Israel  was  groping  and  failing  to  find 
the  Messiah,  those  who  sought  Him  not  clearly 
discerned  Him.  How  can  Israel  be  excused  for 
ignorance  of  a  worldwide  gospel,  when  even  the 
heathen  discovered  it?"     (StiHer). 

III.  IsRAi:i.'s  Re:je:ction  Is  Neither  Compi^ete 
NOR  Final,  (Chapter  ii). 

I.  "I  say  then,  Hath  God  cast  away  his  peo- 
ple?"    (i).  Dr.  Stifler  says: 


"This  chapter  from  the  historical  point  of  view  is 
logically  necessary.  The  Old  Testament  clearly  promises 
Israel  headship  or  leadership  in  the  world's  worship. 
This  primacy  they  had  held  from  the  days  of  Moses 
until  the  days  of  Paul,  when  the  latter  became  the  chief 
instrument  in  transferring  it  to  'another  nation'  (Mt. 
21:43),  composed  of  elect  persons  called  from  all  peo- 
ples (i  Pet.  2:9,  10).  This  promise  of  headship  was 
made  to  Israel  not  on  the  ground  of  their  national  de- 
scent, as  the  9th  chapter  above  shows,  but,  after  all,  it 
was  a  national  promise.  It  belonged  to  the  natural  de- 
scent, and  constituted  their  'advantage.'  It  could  not 
possibly  be  realized  in  the  church,  because  the  latter 
knew  no  racial  distinctions.  The  essence  of  Judaism 
was  separation  from  other  people.  Two  facts  stood  out 
prominently  in  Paul's  day :  first,  that  the  church  for  the 
present  had  displaced  Israel  in  the  leadership'  of  God's 
worship  in  the  world ;  secondly,  that  Israel  had  a  prom- 
ise in  their  'oracles'  that  was  not  realized  in  the  church 
and  could  not  be;    for  the  aim  of  the  latter  was  not 


i68  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

national  separation,  but  diffusion,  or,  more  exactly, 
election  from  all  nations.  The  first  question  Paul  has 
already  considered  in  the  Qth  and  loth  chapters.  Israel 
was  justly  displaced,  and  by  their  own  fault.  With  the 
second  fact  the  present  chapter  deals.  Israel  as  a  sepa- 
rate people  is  to  be  restored  and  to  realize  the  promises 
made  to  them  in  the  Old  Testament.  God's  far-reaching 
plans  in  the  riches  of  His  wisdom  for  the  salvation  of 
the  world  are  here  disclosed,  provoking  the  exultant 
hymn  in  verses  33-36.  Israel's  present  failure  proves  to 
be  the  world's  wealth  now  and  their  own  finally"  {Stif- 
ler). 

2.  "God  forbid!"  (i).  This  is  Paul's  wish, 
that  God  would  forbid  and  prevent  such  a  thing 
as  the  casting  away  of  Israel.  They  were  still 
"His  people,"  though  they  were  "disobedient  and 
gainsaying." 

3.  "For  I  also  am  an  Israelite"  (i).  If  Is- 
raelites as  such  were  cast  off,  then  Paul  would  be 
included;  and  the  fact  that  he  had  been  saved 
was  a  strong  argument  to  show  that  God  had  not 
yet  cast  away  His  people  which  He  foreknew 

(v.  2). 

"That  Israel  has  not  been  forever  set  aside  is  the 
theme  of  this  chapter,  (i)  The  salvation  of  Paul  proves 
that  there  is  still  a  remnant  (v.  i).  (2)  The  doctrine  of 
the  remnant  proves  it  (vs.  2-6).  (3)  The  present 
national  unbelief  was  foreseen  (vs.  7-10).  (4)  Israel's 
unbelief  is  the  Gentile  opportunity  (vs.  11-25).  (S) 
Israel  is  judicially  broken  off  from  the  good  olive  tree, 
Christ  (vs.  17-22).  (6)  They  are  to  be  grafted  in  again 
(vs.  23,  24).  (7)  The  promised  Deliverer  will  come 
out  of  Zion  and  the  nation  will  be  saved  (vs.  25-29). 
That  the  Christian  now  inherits  the  distinctive  Jewish 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     169 

promises  is  not  taught  in  Scripture.  The  Christian  is 
of  the  heavenly  seed  of  Ah^raham  (Gen.  15:5,  6;  Gal. 
3:29),  and  partakes  of  the  spiritual  blessings  of  the 
Abrahamic  covenant  (Gen.  15 :  18)  ;  but  Israel  as  a 
nation  always  has  its  own  place,  and  is  yet  to  have  its 
greatest  exaltation  as  the  earthly  people  of  God"  {"Sco- 
field  Reference  Bible"). 

4.  "Wot  ye  not  what  the  Scripture  saith  of 
Elias?"  (2-4).  The  reference  is  to  i  Ki.  19: 
10-18.  Elijah  supposed  that  he  alone  of  all  Is- 
rael remained  true  to  God.  He  was  mistaken, 
for  God  had  preserved  a  remnant  of  seven  tho^a- 
sand  who  had  not  turned  aside  to  Baal  worship. 

5.  "Even  so  then  at  this  present  time  also 
thefe  is  a  remnant  according  to  the  election  of 
grace"  (5).  Paul  himself  was  a  proof  of  this, 
as  well  as  the  others  in  Israel  who  had  accepted 
the  Messiah  and  found  salvation  in  Him. 

6.  "And  if  by  grace,  then  is  it  no  more  of 
works:  otherwise  grace  is  no  more  grace" 
(6).  We  have  quoted  the  entire  verse,  the  re- 
maining words  in  the  King  James  Version  being 
spurious.  "The  *no  more'  is  not  temporal,  but 
logical.  Grace  and  works  are  mutually  exclu- 
sive methods.  If  the  remnant  was  selected  on 
the  ground  of  grace,  their  legal  works  had  no 
part  whatever  in  the  selection,  else  the  grace 
would  have  lost  its  character  as  grace"  (Stifler). 

7.  "What  then?"  (7).  What  is  the  conclu- 
sion? This:  "Israel  hath  not  obtained  that 
which  he  seeketh  for."     Israel  sought  for  right- 


170  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

eousness  but  failed  to  find  it,  ''because  they 
sought  it  not  by  faith,  but  as  it  were  by  the  works 
of  the  law"  (ch.  9:31,  32). 

8.  "But  the  election  hath  obtained  it*'  (7). 
The  elect  remnant  obtained  what  the  nation  as  a 
whole  failed  to  find. 

9.  "And  the  rest  were  hardened"  (7,  R.  V.). 
The  nation  of  Israel  as  such  is  lying  under  the 
judicial  chastening  of  God. 

10.  "According  as  it  is  written"  (8).  The 
parenthesis  here  should  be  omitted,  for  the  clos- 
ing words  of  the  verse  are  included  in  the  quota- 
tion. The  point  is  that  in  the  Jew's  own  Scrip- 
tures all  this  had  been  clearly  predicted  before- 
hand ;  therefore  he  had  been  fully  warned  of  the 
consequence  of  turning  from  God. 

11.  "God  gave  them  a  spirit  of  stupor,  eyes 
that  they  should  not  see,  and  ears  that  they 
should  not  hear,  unto  this  very  day"  (8,R.  V.). 
Isa.  29 :  10  and  Deut.  29 : 4  are  combined  in  the 
citation,  and  the  passages  should  be  pondered, 
with  their  contexts.  The  teaching  is  very  solemn. 
Long-continued  abuse  of  God's  grace  brought  a 
terrible  punishment  upon  Israel. 

The  principle  is  unfolded  in  Isaiah's  dreadful 
commission  (Isa.  6).  Let  the  reader  carefully 
meditate  upon  that  impressive  scene.  Isaiah  had 
seen  a  vision  of  the  King,  Jehovah  of  hosts  (v. 
5).  It  filled  him  with  horror  on  account  of  his 
own  sinful  condition,  and  that  of  his  people. 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.    171 

There  is  nothing  Hke  a  look  at  the  Lord  Himself 
to  reveal  to  man  his  utter  uncleanness. 

"Then  said  I,  Woe  is  me !  for  I  am  undone ;  because 
I  am  a  man  of  unclean  lips,  and  I  dwell  in  the  midst  of 
a  people  of  unclean  lips :  for  mine  eyes  have  seen  the 
King,  Jehovah  of  hosts." 

A  seraph  thereupon  flew  unto  the  prophet, 
with  a  live  coal  from  the  altar,  and,  touching  his 
mouth  with  it,  announced  the  purging  and  for- 
giveness of  his  sins.  Then  came  the  voice  of  the 
Lord:  "Whom  shall  I  send?  Who  will  go  for 
Us?"  The  prophet  answered,  "Here  am  I;  send 
me."  Now,  carefully  observe  the  precise  terms 
of  his  commission.  We  quote  from  the  Revised 
Version : 

"And  he  said,  Go,  and  tell  this  people,  Hear  ye  indeed 
('continually,'  margin),  but  understand  not;  and  see  ye 
indeed  ('continually,'  mg.),  but  perceive  not.  Make  the 
heart  of  this  people  fat,  and  make  their  ears  heavy,  and 
shut  their  eyes ;  lest  they  see  with  their  eyes,  and  hear 
with  their  ears,  and  understand  with  their  hearts,  and 
turn  again,  and  be  healed." 

The  horror  of  the  prophet  at  hearing  these  ter- 
rible words  may  well  be  imagined.  His  agonized 
query  was,  "Lord,  how  long?" 

"And  he  answered.  Until  cities  be  waste  without  in- 
habitants, and  houses  without  man,  and  the  land  become 
utterly  waste,  and  Jehovah  have  removed  men  far  away, 
and  the  forsaken  places  be  many  in  the  midst  of  the 


172  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

land.  And  if  there  be  yet  a  tenth  in  it,  it  also  shall  in 
turn  be  eaten  up :  as  a  terebinth,  and  as  an  oak,  whose 
stock  remaineth,  when  they  are  felled ;  so  the  holy  seed 
is  the  stock  thereof." 

Over  and  over  again  this  Scripture  is  quoted 
in  the  New  Testament  and  its  fulfillment  pointed 
out.  In  Mt.  13,  replying  to  a  query  as  to  why 
He  had  begun  to  teach  the  people  in  parables,  our 
Lord  replied: 

"Because  they  seeing  see  not ;  and  hearing  they  hear 
not,  neither  do  they  understand.  And  unto  them  is  ful- 
filled the  prophecy  of  Isaiah  which  saith,  By  hearing  ye 
shall  hear,  and  shall  in  no  wise  understand ;  and  seeing 
ye  shall  see,  and  shall  in  no  wise  perceive :  for  this  peo- 
ple's heart  is  waxed  gross,  and  their  ears  are  dull  of 
hearing,  and  their  eyes  they  have  closed ;  lest  haply  they 
should  perceive  with  their  eyes,  and  hear  with  their  ears, 
and  understand  with  their  heart,  and  should  turn  again, 
and  I  should  heal  them. 

"But  blessed  are  your  eyes,  for  they  see;  and  your 
ears,  for  they  hear.  For  verily  I  say  unto  you,  that 
many  prophets  and  righteous  men  desired  to  see  the 
things  which  ye  see,  and  saw  them  not ;  and  to  hear  the 
things  which  ye  hear,  and  heard  them  not"  (Mt.  13: 
10-16;  compare  Mk.  4:  12;   Lk.  8:  10). 

In  Jno.  12 :  39  it  is  declared  that  certain  of  our 
Lord's  hearers  were  unable  to  believe.  The 
whole  passage  is  in  verses  37-41,  as  bearing  upon 
this  point : 

"But  though  He  had  done  so  many  signs  before  them, 
yet  they  believed  not  on  Him :    that  the  word  of  Isaiah 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     173 

the  prophet  might  be  fulfilled,  which  he  spake,  Lord, 
who  hath  believed  our  report?  and  to  whom  hath  the 
arm  of  the  Lord  been  revealed?  (Isa.  53:  i).  For  this 
cause  they  could  not  believe,  for  Isaiah  said  again.  He 
hath  blinded  their  eyes,  and  He  hardened  their  heart; 
lest  they  should  see  with  their  eyes,  and  perceive  with 
their  heart,  and  should  turn,  and  I  should  heal  them. 
These  things  said  Isaiah,  because  he  saw  His  glory ;  and 
he  spake  of  Him." 

The  passage  is  again  cited  in  Ac.  28 :  26,  27. 
The  connection  there  also  is  full  of  solemn  im- 
port. Paul  had  reached  Rome  in  chains,  and  had 
called  together  the  leaders  among  the  Jews  in 
that  city  (v.  17).     We  quote  verses  23-28 : 

"And  when  they  had  appointed  him  a  day,  they  came 
to  him  into  his  lodging  in  great  number ;  to  whom  he 
expounded  the  matter,  testifying  the  kingdom  of  God, 
and  persuading  them  concerning  Jesus,  both  from  the 
law  of  Moses  and  from  the  prophets,  from  morning  till 
evening.  And  some  believed  the  things  which  were 
spoken,  and  some  disbelieved.  And  when  they  agreed 
not  among  themselves,  they  departed  after  that  Paul  had 
spoken  one  word,  Well  spake  the  Holy  Spirit  through 
Isaiah  the  prophet  unto  your  fathers,  saying,  Go  thou 
unto  this  people,  and  say.  By  hearing  ye  shall  hear,  and 
shall  in  no  wise  understand ;  and  seeing  ye  shall  see,  and 
shall  in  no  wise  perceive :  for  this  people's  heart  is 
waxed  gross,  and  their  ears  are  dull  of  hearing,  and  their 
eyes  they  have  closed;  lest  haply  they  should  perceive 
with  their  eyes,  and  hear  with  their  ears,  and  understand 
with  their  heart,  and  should  turn  again,  and  I  should 
heal  them.  Be  it  known  therefore  unto  you,  that  this 
salvation  of  God  is  sent  unto  the  Gentiles:  they  will 
also  hear/' 


J  74  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

Thus  there  had  come  upon  Israel  to  the  utter- 
most the  thing  that  was  threatened,  the  inevitable 
consequence  of  hearing  the  Word  of  God  and  do- 
ing it  not  (compare  Jas.  1:22-25).  And  this 
judicial  hardening  continues  upon  Israel  "unto 
this  very  day"  also.  Although  nineteen  cen- 
turies have  come  and  gone  since  the  epistle  to 
the  Romans  was  written,  Israel  is  still  hardened, 
still  far  from  God,  still  *'a  people  scattered  and 
peeled,"  still  dispersed  and  despised,  still  reckon- 
ed "a  curse  among  the  nations." 

12.  "And  David  saith"  (9,  10).  The  Scrip- 
ture quoted  in  these  two  verses  is  from  one  of  the 
confessedly  Messianic  Psalms,  the  69th  (vs.  22, 
23).  If  anyone  doubts  that  Christ  is  the  theme 
of  this  Psalm,  let  him  compare  the  9th  verse  with 
Jno.  2:  17  and  Rom.  15:3;  the  21st  verse  with 
Mt.  27:34,  48;  Mk.  15:23;  Lk.  23:36;  Jno. 
19:28-30;  the  22d  verse  with  Rom.  11:9,  10; 
and  the  25th  verse  with  Mt.  23 :  38;  Lk.  13  :  35 ; 
Ac.  1:20.  The  Speaker  throughout  the  69th 
Psalm  is  undoubtedly  Christ.  At  verse  20  He 
says : 

"Reproach  hath  broken  My  heart;  and  I  am  full  of 
heaviness:  and  I  looked  for  some  to  take  pity, -but  there 
was  none;  and  for  comforters,  but  I  found  none.  They 
gave  Me  also  gall  for  My  food ;  and  for  My  thirst  they 
gave  Me  vinegar  to  drink." 

This  was  fulfilled,  as  we  know,  on  the  cross 
(Jno.   19:28).     Then  the  divine  Sufferer  goes 


THB  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     175 

on,  in  the  words  of  verses  22,  23,  the  words 
quoted  in  the  passage  we  are  now  studying  in 
Romans : 

"Let  their  table  before  them  become  a  snare;  and 
when  they  are  in  peace,  let  it  become  a  trap.  Let  their 
eyes  be  darkened,  so  that  they  cannot  see;  and  make 
their  loins  continually  to  shake." 

Again  we  have  quoted  from  the  Revised  Ver- 
sion. The  form  of  the  words  in  Romans  is  that 
of  the  Septuagint,  where  the  passage  reads : 

"Let  their  table  before  them  be  for  a  snare,  and  for  a 
recompense,  and  for  a  stumbling-block.  Let  their  eyes 
be  darkened,  that  they  should  not  see;  and  bow  down 
their  back  continually." 

"In  the  word  'table,'  "  says  Dr.  Stifler,  "there 
is  a  picture  of  men  feasting,  eating  and  drinking, 
unconscious  that  their  enemies  are  just  upon 
them.  The  Jew's  carnal  security  while  trusting 
in  the  law  proved  his  spiritual  ruin.  But  the  quo- 
tation is  poetic,  and  need  not  be  rigidly  defined. 
'And  bow  (Thou)  down  their  back  alway'  under 
the  heavy  legal  yoke  (Ac.  15:  10).  The  'alway' 
does  not  mean  for  ever,  or  the  whole  discussion 
concerning  Israel  must  end  here.  'Alway,'  con- 
verted in  a  few  cases  by  some  editors  into  a 
phrase,  occurs  about  seven  times,  and  means  con- 
tinuously or  without  interruption  (Lk.  24:53; 
Heb.  13:  15).  It  is  not  an  indefinite,  but  a  lim- 
ited term,  limited  by  the  circumstances  of  which 
it  speaks." 


176  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

13.  "I  say  then,  Have  they  stumbled  that 
they  should  fall?"  (11).  That  they  have  fallen 
cannot  be  denied;  but  is  this  the  end?  Has 
Israel  no  future  in  God's  purpose  ?  Must  we  con- 
clude that,  since  Israel  has  been  unfaithful  to 
God,  therefore  God  will  be  unfaithful  to  Israel? 
Shall  He  forget  His  covenant?  "Shall  not  the 
Judge  of  all  the  earth  do  right?"  Israel  has 
stumbled,  and  fallen.    Is  this  the  end  ? 

14.  "God  forbid!"  (11).  This  is  not  the  final 
outcome  of  their  history.  God  had  a  purpose  even 
in  their  stumbling  and  fall,  and  that  purpose  was 
a  gracious  and  benign  one.  "Through  their  fall 
salvation  is  come  unto  the  Gentiles."  And  even 
this  was  not  for  the  sake  of  the  Gentiles  only,  for 
it  was  in  God's  mind  by  this  means  "to  provoke 
them  (that  is,  the  Jews)  to  jealousy."  ''Emula- 
tion" stands  for  the  same  Greek  word  in  verse 
14,  and  is  to  be  preferred,  notwithstanding  the 
action  of  the  Revisers  in  using  "jealousy"  in  both 
verses.  Parazeloo  is,  literally,  "to  stimulate  along- 
side," and  its  force  here  is  "to  excite  to  rivalry" 
(Strong).  The  same  word  occurs  in  Rom.  10: 
19  and  I  Cor.  10:22.  Dr.  Moule  calls  attention, 
in  connection  with  this  chapter  to  "the  divine 
benignity  which  lurks  even  under  the  edges  of 
the  cloud  of  judgment."    Continuing,  he  says: 

"And  observe,  too,  thus  close  to  the  passage  which  has 
put  before  us  the  mysterious  side  of  divine  action  on 
human  wills,  the  daylight  simphcity  of  this  side  of  that 
action;  the  loving  skill  with  which  the  world's  bless- 
ing is  meant  by  the  grace  of  God  to  act,  exactly  in  the 
line  of  human  feeling,  upon  the  will  of  Israel. 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     I77 

"But  would  that  'the  Gentiles'  had  borne  more  in 
heart  that  last  short  sentence  of  St.  Paul  through  these 
long  centuries  since  the  apostles  fell  asleep!  It  is  one 
of  the  most  marked,  as  it  is  one  of  the  saddest,  phe- 
nomena in  the  history  of  the  church,  that  for  ages, 
almost  from  the  days  of  St.  John  himself,  we  look  in 
vain  either  for  any  appreciable  Jewish  element  in 
Christendom,  or  for  any  extended  effort  on  the  part 
of  Christendom  to  win  Jewish  hearts  to  Christ  by  a 
wise  and  loving  evangelization.  With  only  relatively 
insignificant  exceptions  this  was  the  abiding  state  of 
things  till  well  within  the  eighteenth  century,  when  the 
German  Pietists  began  to  call  the  attention  of  believing 
Christians  to  the  spiritual  needs  and  prophetic  hopes 
of  Israel,  and  to  remind  them  that  the  Jews  were  not 
only  a  beacon  of  judgment,  or  only  the  most  impressive 
and  awful  illustration  of  the  fulfilment  of  prophecy, 
but  the  bearers  of  the  yet  unfulfilled  predictions  of 
mercy  for  themselves  and  for  the  world.  Meanwhile, 
ail  through  the  Middle  Age,  and  through  generations 
of  preceding  and  following  time  also,  Christendom  did 
little  for  Israel  but  retaliate,  reproach,  and  tyrannize. 
It  was  so  of  old  in  England:  witness  the  fires  of 
York.  It  is  so  in  this  day  in  Russia,  and  where  the 
'Judenhetze'  inflames  innumerable  hearts  in  central 
Europe. 

"No  doubt  there  is  more  than  one  side  to  the  per- 
sistent phenomena.  There  is  a  side  of  mystery;  the 
permissive  sentence  of  the  Eternal  has  to  do  with  the 
long  affliction,  however  caused,  of  the  people  which 
once  uttered  the  fatal  cry,  'His  blood  be  on  us,  and  on 
our  children!'  (Mat.  27:25).  And  the  wrong-doings 
of  Jews,  beyond  a  doubt,  have  often  made  a  dark 
occasion  for  a  'Jew-hatred,*  on  a  larger  or  narrower 
scale.  But  all  this  leaves  unaltered,  from  the  point  of 
view  of  the  gospel,  the  sin  of  Christendom  in  its  tre- 
mendous failure  to  seek,  in  love,  the  good  of  erring 
Israel.     It  leaves  as   black  as  ever  the  guilt  of  every 


178  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

fierce  retaliation  upon  Jews  by  so-called  Christians,  of 
every  slanderous  belief  about  Jewish  creed  or  life,  of 
every  unjust  anti-Jewish  law  ever  passed  by  Christian 
king  or  senate.  It  leaves  an  undiminished  responsi- 
bility upon  the  church  of  Christ,  not  only  for  the 
flagrant  wrong  of  having  too  often  animated  and  di- 
rected the  civil  power  in  its  oppressions  of  Israel,  and 
not  only  for  having  so  often  neglected  to  seek  the 
evangelization  of  Israel  by  direct  appeals  for  the  true 
Messiah,  and  by  an  open  setting  forth  of  His  glory, 
but  for  the  deeper  and  more  subtle  wrong,  persistently 
inflicted  from  age  to  age,  in  a  most  guilty  unconscious- 
ness— the  wrong  of  having  failed  to  manifest  Christ 
to  Israel  through  the  living  holiness  of  Christendom. 
Here,  surely,  is  the  very  point  of  the  apostle's  thought 
in  the  sentence  before  us :  'Salvation  to  the  Gentiles, 
to  move  the  Jews  to  jealousy/  In  his  inspired  idea, 
Gentile  Christendom,  in  Christ,  was  to  be  so  pure,  so 
beneficent,  so  happy,  finding  manifestly  in  its  Messianic 
Lord  such  resources  for  both  peace  of  conscience  and 
a  life  of  noble  love,  love  above  all  directed  towards 
opponents  and  traducers,  that  Israel,  looking  on,  with 
eyes  however  purblind  with  prejudice,  should  soon  see 
a  moral  glory  in  the  church's  face  impossible  to  be 
hid,  and  be  drawn  as  by  a  moral  magnet  to  the  church's 
hope.  Is  it  the  fault  of  God  (may  He  pardon  the 
formal  question,  if  it  lacks  reverence),  or  the  fault 
of  man,  man  carrying  the  Christian  name,  that  facts 
have  been  so  woefully  otherwise  in  the  course  of  his- 
tory? It  is  the  fault,  the  grievous  fault  of  us  Christians. 
The  narrow  prejudice,  the  iniquitous  law,  the  rigid 
application  of  exaggerated  ecclesiastical  principle,  all 
these  things  have  been  man's  perversion  of  the  divine 
idea,  to  be  confessed  and  deplored  in  a  deep  and  in- 
terminable repentance.  May  the  mercy  of  God  awaken 
Gentile  Christendom,  in  a  manner  and  degree  as  yet 
unknown,  to  remember  this  our  indefeasible  debt  to 
this   people,    everywhere   present   with   us,    everywhere 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     179 

distinct  from  us ;— the  debt  of  a  life,  personal  and 
ecclesiastical,  so  manifestly  pure  and  loving  in  our 
Lord  the  Christ  as  to  move  them  to  the  jealousy  which 
shall  claim  Him  again  for  their  own.  Then  we  shall 
indeed  be  hastening  the  day  of  full  and  final  blessing, 
both  for  themselves  and  for  the  world"  {Handley  C. 
G.  Moule). 

15.  "Now  if  the  fall  of  them  be  the  riches 
of  the  world,  .  .  .  how  much  more  their 
fullness?"  (12-15).  Everything  worth  while  has 
come  to  the  Gentile  world  through  Israel.  If 
such  blessing  has  come  through  their  stumbling 
and  falling,  far  greater  blessing  is  to  come 
through  their  return  to  their  own  place  in  God's 
love  and  favor.  Paul,  as  the  apostle  to  the  Gen- 
tiles, sought  to  stir  his  own  kinsmen  to  emulation, 
for  only  through  Israel's  recovery  is  the  world- 
wide blessing  to  come.  Their  casting  away  has 
brought  reconciliation  to  Gentiles,  but  their  own 
reconciliation  will  be  as  "life  from  the  dead.'* 
It  is  ever  God's  plan  to  bless  the  world  through 
the  Jew.    In  His  own  time, 

"He  shall  cause  them  that  come  of  Jacob  to  take 
root:  Israel  shall  blossom  and  bud,  and  fill  the  face  of 
the  world  with  fruit"   (Isa.  27:6). 

It  is  to  this  nation  that  the  prophet  calls,  saying, 

"Arise,  shine;  for  thy  light  is  come,  and  the  glory 
of  Jehovah  is  risen  upon  thee.  For,  behold,  the  dark- 
ness shall  cover  the  earth,  and  gross  darkness  the 
peoples :  but  Jehovah  shall  arise  upon  thee,  and  His 
glory  shall  be  seen  upon  thee.  And  the  Gentiles  shall 
come  to  thy  light,  and  kings  to  the  brightness  of  thy 
rising   (resurrection   from  the  dead!)"    (Isa.  60:1-3). 

This  is  the  order  everywhere  in  the  Scriptures 
of  God.    Israel  must  first  come  into  the  blessing, 


i8o  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

and  then  the  Gentiles.     Hear  God's  nation  sing, 
in  the  67th  Psalm : 

"God  be  merciful  to  us,  and  bless  us;  and  cause  His 
face  to  shine  upon  us;  that  Thy  way  may  be  known 
upon  earth,  Thy  salvation  among  all  nations.  .  .  . 
God  shall  bless  us;  and  all  the  ends  of  the  earth 
shall    fear   Him." 

1 6.  "For  if  the  firstfruit  be  holy,  the  lump  is 
also  holy:  and  if  the  root  be  holy,  so  are  the 
branches"  (i6).  Numbers  15:21  interprets  the 
former  of  these  two  figures.  A  handful  of  dough 
was  presented  to  God  as  a  token  of  the  lump 
from  which  it  was  taken.  By  the  firstfruit  here 
Paul  means  the  saved  Jewish  remnant,  including 
himself  and  all  believers  in  Israel.  By  the  lump 
he  means  the  whole  nation.  The  root,  strictly 
speaking,  is  Abraham  (Gal.  3:29),  and  the  na- 
tural branches  are  his  descendants  according  to 
the  flesh  through  Isaac  and  Jacob,  ''the  heirs 
with  him  of  the  same  promise." 

17.  "And  if  some  of  the  branches  be  broken 
off,  and  thou,  being  a  wild  olive  tree,  wert 
grafifed  in  among  them,  and  with  them  par- 
tcikest  of  the  root  and  fatness  of  the  olive  tree, 
boast  not  against  the  branches"  (17-24).  In 
this  discussion  the  point  is  that  just  as  the  nation 
of  Israel  through  unbelief  has  temporarily  lost 
its  place  of  primacy  and  favor  in  the  counsels  of 
God,  exactly  so  shall  the  Gentile  peoples,  if  they 
believe  not,  be  also  cast  aside.  Men  do  not  graft 
wild  branches  into  good  trees.  God  has  acted 
"contrary  to  nature"   in  bringing  salvation  to 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.     i8i 

Gentiles.  To  bring  salvation  to  His  own  cov- 
enant people,  which  He  will  surely  do  in  due 
time,  will  be  a  perfectly  logical  proceeding.  And 
"God  is  able." 

1 8.  "For  I  would  not,  brethren,  that  ye 
should  be  ignorant  of  this  mystery"  (25-27). 
The  Spirit  of  God  here  whispers  a  secret  into  the 
ear  of  the  church  of  God — a  revelation  concern- 
ing God's  eternal  purpose  for  His  beloved  ancient 
people.  Lest  we  "should  be  wise"  in  our  "own 
conceits,"  God  would  have  us  to  know  "that 
blindness  (a  hardening,  R.  V.)  in  part  is  hap- 
pened to  Israel,  until  the  fulness  of  the  Gentiles 
be  come  in."  The  reader's  attention  is  directed 
to  the  comments  on  verses  7-10,  above.  Ob- 
serve, in  addition,  that  the  blindness,  or  harden- 
ing, is  neither  complete  or  final.  It  is  not  com- 
plete, for  it  is  only  "in  part."  A  remnant  in 
Israel  is  turning  to  the  Messiah  (verse  5,  above). 
And  it  is  not  final,  for  it  is  only  "until"  the 
church  is  complete,  "which  is  His  body,  the  ful- 
ness of  Him"  (Eph.  i :  22,  23).  , 

19.  "And  so  all  Israel  shall  be  saved"  (26, 
2y).  The  difficulty  connected  with  these  verses, 
which  has  given  so  much  concern  to  commenta- 
tors, will  disappear  when  the  punctuation  is  cor- 
rected. The  statement  is  clear  enough  when  we 
read,  "And  so  all  Israel  shall  be  saved  as  it  is 
written."  Everything  is  bound  to  come  to  pass 
"as  it  is  written."  The  Scriptures  are  emphatic 
in  predicting  that  a  time  is  coming  when  God 
will  save  the  nation  of  Israel  as  such.     Not  a 


i82  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

remnant,  but  the  whole  nation  then  living  shall 
be  converted  and  saved.  This  does  not  touch  the 
case  of  Israelites  who  die  in  this  present  age  re- 
jecting the  salvation  of  God,  but  it  covers  the 
whole  nation  that  shall  be  left  upon  the  earth  at 
the  time  when  the  great  blessing  comes.  All  this 
will  be  brought  about,  of  course,  by  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ.  He  it  is  that  "shall  come  out  of 
Sion  the  Deliverer,  and  shall  turn  away  ungod- 
liness from  Jacob."  He  has  already  come  as  the 
Redeemer,  the  Goel,  "to  Zion,  and  unto  them  that 
turn  from  transgression  in  Jacob"  (Isa.  59:20)  ; 
but  the  nation  refused  to  receive  Him.  Yet  ''the 
foundation  of  God  standeth  sure,"  and  "all 
Israel  shall  be  saved  as  it  is  written."  He  has  not 
forgotten  His  promise,  and  in  due  time  He  will 
fulfill  it  in  every  jot  and  tittle.  "For  this  is  my 
covenant  unto  them,  when  I  shall  take  away 
their  sins."  Let  us  look  at  the  terms  of  His 
covenant  unto  them : 

"Behold,  the  days  come,  saith  Jehovah,  that  I  will 
make  a  new  covenant  with  the  house  of  Israel,  and 
with  the  house  of  Judah :  not  according  to  the  covenant 
that  I  made  with  their  fathers  in  the  day  that  I  took 
them  by  the  hand  to  bring  them  out  of  the  land  of 
Egypt;  which  My  covenant  they  brake,  although  I  was 
an  husband  unto  them,  saith  Jehovah :  but  this  shall  be 
the  covenant  that  I  will  make  with  the  house  of 
Isreal;  After  those  days,  saith  Jehovah,  I  will  put  My 
law  in  their  inward  parts,  and  write  it  in  their  hearts ; 
and  I  will  be  their  God,  and  they  shall  be  My  people. 
And  they  shall  teach  no  more  every  man  his  neighbor, 
and  every  man  his  brother,  saying,  Know  Jehovah : 
for   they   shall   ALL  know  Me,   from   the   least  of 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  COD'S  WAYS.      183 

them  unto  the  greatest  of  them,  saith  Jehovah:  for 
]  will  forgive  their  iniquity,  and  I  will  remember 
their  sin  no  more"   (Jer.  31:31-35). 

20.  "As  concerning  the  gospel,  they  are 
enemies  for  your  sakes;  but  as  touching 
the  election,  they  are  beloved  for  the  fathers' 
sakes  (28-31).  The  Jews  have  rejected  the 
gospel,  and  that  puts  them  in  the  place  of 
God's  enemies  for  the  time  being.  Let  the  '' 
Gentiles  take  advantage  of  the  opportunity;  this 
is  preeminently  the  Gentiles'  day.  Let  them  not 
forget,  though,  that  Israel  is  still  an  elect  nation, 
and  that  to  the  fathers  God  made  great  and  sure 
promises.  "The  gifts  and  calling  of  God  are 
without  repentance."  Having  bestowed  "gifts 
and  calling"  upon  Israel,  God  will  never  take 
those  gifts  or  that  calling  back;  they  are  theirs 
for  ever ;  he  does  not  change.  The  Gentiles  have 
by  their  disobedience  brought  upon  themselves 
the  mercy  of  God ;  and  just  so  shall  the  children 
of  Israel  by  their  disobedience  bring  upon  them- 
selves the  mercy  of  God. 

21.  "For  God  hath  concluded  them  all  in 
unbelief"  (32).  The  Revision  is  to  be  preferred 
here :  "For  God  hath  shut  up  all  unto  disobedi- 
ence, that  He  might  have  mercy  upon  all." 

"His  whole  action  with  both  Jew  and  Gentile  comes 
to  this,  that  He  'hath  concluded  (locked  up  as  in  a 
prison),  them  all  in  unbelief  (with  this  grand  pur- 
pose), that  He  might  have  mercy  upon  all.'  There  is 
nothing  richer  than  His  mercy.  If  the  Jews,  for  in- 
stance, had  obeyed  Him,  they  could  have  experienced 
only  His  fidelity.     Mercy,  which  wholly  excludes  privi- 


i84  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

lege  or  merit,  is  the  grand  idea  (Eph.  2:4,  5).  The 
Jew  wjU  find  his  gifts  and  caUing,  but  they  come  to 
Him  as  a  matter  of  mercy — mercy  that  excludes  'boast- 
ing' (3:27). 

"Authorities  are  divided  on  the  meaning  of  'all.*  It 
certainly  does  not  refer  to  the  elect;  the  whole  context 
forbids  that.  But  does  it  mean  all  men,  all  individuals 
{Meyer,  Alford),  or  all  nations,  the  Jews  and  the 
Gentiles  about  whom  Paul  has  been  speaking?  The 
context  is  decisive  for  the  latter.  This  general  princi- 
ple, as  some  have  failed  to  notice,  describes  God's 
attitude  toward  men,  and  not  the  outcome  of  that  at- 
titude. It  does  not  contradict  other  plain  Scriptures 
by  teaching  universal  salvation,  or  salvation  without 
faith.  'The  Scripture  hath  concluded  all  under  sin,  that 
the  promise  by  faith  of  Jesus  Christ  might  be  given  to 
them  that  believe'  (Gal.  3:  22).  The  principle  says 
nothing  about  the  outcome  of  the  divine  mercy  toward 
all.  It  simply  declares  that  God  has  actively  and  di- 
rectly locked  up  all  in  sin  so  that  he  may  have  mercy 
toward  all;  and  that  if  they  are  saved  they  are  saved 
by  mercy. 

"This  is  the  final  and  complete  explanation  of  the 
Jew's  fall.  He  was  by  nature  a  sinner:  God  hedged 
that  nature  about  with  a  rigid  law  to  show  him  what  his 
real  character  was.  He  tried  to  find  liberty  within 
its  iron  bars,  but  gets  only  slavery.  Mercy  alone  can 
deliver  him. 

"The  Gentile  in  Paul's  day  had  no  law,  but  sought 
liberty  in  wisdom,  his  own  wisdom  (1:21,  22),  and  in 
his  quest  became  a  fool  and  a  slave  to  his  lust.  God 
knows  that  man  cannot  save  himself,  that  no  form  of 
civil  government  and  no  system  of  ethics,  even  though 
it  be  that  of  the  Old  or  of  the  New  Testament,  can 
attain  to  liberty.  But  man  does  not  know  it;  he  i*  in 
the  rough  prison,  shut  up  under  sin  to  learn  it,  to  learn 
that  salvation  cannot  be  reached  bv  human  effort,  that 


THE  VINDICATION  OF  GOD'S  WAYS.      185 

it   comes    down    from    God,    the    absolute   gift   of    His 
mercy. 

"This  divine  purpose  of  mercy  is  not  only  the  ex- 
planation of  the  Jew's  fall,  but  of  the  continuance  of 
the  world  in  sin.  It  is  the  key  to  those  terrible  first 
chapters  of  the  epistle.  Universal  condemnation  leads 
to  the  universal  principle  of  mercy.  And  what  Paul 
saw  in  his  world-wide  view  in  his  day,  is  still  sadly 
true.  The  nations  are  in  sin ;  Israel  still  refuses  the 
Christ.  The  lesson  of  sin's  prison-house  is  not  yet 
learned;  but  what  the  elect  have  found  out  all  along — 
that  there  is  no  hope  in  themselves — the  nations  will 
learn  in  due  time,  and  man's  works  will  cease,  and 
God's  principle  of  mercy  toward  all  will  bring  salva- 
tion. God  now  elects  men  from  both  Jew  and  Gentile; 
Jew  •  and  Gentile  will  then  elect  God.  This  thirty- 
second  verse  is  the  climax  of  the  epistle"   (Stiiier). 

22.  "O  the  depth  of  the  riches  both  of  the 
wisdom  and  knowledge  of  God!"  (33-36). 
Here  the  chapter,  and  the  section,  closes  with  a 
song  of  praise  to  God.  "How  unsearchable  are 
His  judgments,  and  His  ways  past  finding 
out!"  It  is  only  as  He  reveals  Himself  that  we 
can  know  Him  at  all  (Compare  Job  5:9;  11:7; 
15:8).  "For  who  hath  known  the  mind  of 
the  Lord?  or  who  hath  been  His  counsellor?" 
(Isa.  40:  13,  14).  "Or  who  hath  first  given  to 
Him,  and  it  shall  be  recompensed  unto  him 
again?"'  (Job  35:  7;  41  •  0-  "For  of  Him,  and 
through  Him,  and  unto  Him,  are  all  things: 
to  Whom  be  glory  for  ever.   Amen." 


FOURTH  MAIN  DIVISION:   THE  CHRIS- 
TIAN WALK 


(Chapter  12:  i  to  15:  13) 


The  strictly  doctrinal  portion  of  our  epistle 
ends  with  the  nth  chapter,  and  the  remainder  is 
occupied  chiefly  with  exhortations  to  a  Christian 
walk  in  accordance  with  what  has  been  taught. 
This  is  ever  the  Holy  Spirit's  way,  as  seen 
throughout  the  Scriptures.  Doctrine  determines 
duty.  Creed  characterizes  conduct.  What  a 
man  really  believes  is  revealed  by  what  he  does. 
''For  as  he  thinketh  in  his  heart,  so  is  he"  (Prov. 

23:7). 

This  method  of  teaching  is  illustrated  in  Eph. 
5 : 8,  where  it  is  written,  "Ye  were  sometimes 
darkness,  but  now  are  ye  light  in  the  Lord :  walk 
as  children  of  light."  The  doctrine  precedes  the 
exhortation,  and  furnishes  the  basis  for  it.  And 
so  it  is  in  the  closing  section  of  Romans :  these 
hortatory  chapters  are  the  outgrowth  of  the  won- 
derful teaching  of  the  preceding  doctrinal  ones. 
Here  we  shall  find  the  whole  ground  of  Chris- 
tian life  fully  covered.  First  of  all,  the  life  must 
be  yielded  to  God,  and  He  must  be  in  full  posses- 
sion (12:  I,  2).  This  is  fundamental,  and  with- 
out it  the  Christian  life  cannot  be  normal.  But 
let  this  point  be  settled — settled  right,  and  once 
186 


THB  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  187 

for  all— and  great  fruitfulness  and  blessing  will 
result. 

I.  The  Living  Sacrifice  (12:  i,  2). 

1.  "I  beseech  you"  (i).  The  verb  here  is 
parakaleo,  from  Paraclete,  the  Holy  Spirit's  title 
so  often  translated  "Comforter."  It  is  also  ap- 
plied to  the  Lord  Jesus  as  our  "Advocate"  ( i 
Jno.  2:1).  The  verb  itself  is  frequently  found 
in  the  New  Testament,  and  is  variously  trans- 
lated, "beseech,"  "call  for,"  "comfort,"  "desire," 
"exhort,"  "intreat,"  and  "pray."  It  is  a  strong 
word,  hard  to  render  into  English.  But  the 
Spirit  uses  it  here,  in  seeking  to  induce  His  peo- 
ple to  fully  yield  themselves  to  Him.  It  is  as  if 
God  Himself  were  on  His  knees  before  His  peo- 
ple, if  we  may  so  speak,  begging  them  to  once 
and  for  all  give  themselves  over  to  Him,  and  thus 
enter  into  the  fulness  of  the  blessing  of  the  gos- 
pel of  Christ. 

2.  "Therefore"  (i).  This  word  calls  atten- 
tion to  all  that  has  preceded  it  in  the  epistle. 
Doubtless,  the  special  connection  is  with  the  ar- 
gument which  ends  with  the  8th  chapter,  the 
theodicy  of  chapters  9  to  11  being  paren- 
thetical ;  and  yet  it  may  well  be  that  even  those 
chapters  were  also  in  the  writer's  mind  as  he 
wrote  the  "therefore."  The  practical  exhorta- 
tions which  are  to  follow  are  based  upon  the  doc- 
trines already  set  forth.  "What  the  eye  is  in  the 
body,  that  faith  is  to  the  soul,  and  the  knowledge 


i88  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

of  divine  things.  Yet  it  has  need  of  practical 
virtue,  as  the  eye  has  need  of  hands  and  feet  aiid 
the  other  parts  of  the  body.  And  therefore  the 
divine  apostle  in  his  doctrinal  argument  subjoins 
ethical  instruction  also"  (Theodoret) . 

3.  "Brethren"  (i).  It  is  a  message  for  the 
brethren,  and  not  for  the  unbeliever.  Let  no  one 
distort  this  passage  into  a  gospel  text.  The  un- 
saved sinner  cannot  give  himself  to  God,  and  if 
he  could  the  offering  would  not  be  acceptable. 
The  only  thing  for  a  lost  man  to  do  is  to  receive 
the  Lord  Jesus  as  his  personal  Saviour.  After 
that  is  done,  he  may  speak  of  making  an  offering. 

4.  "By  the  mercies  of  God"  (i).  The  mer- 
cies of  God  are  surely  exhibited  in  the  gospel, 
as  so  graphically  portrayed  in  the  preceding  chap- 
ters of  our  epistle.  "By  these  very  facts,  he 
says,  I  beseech  you,  by  which  ye  were  saved :  as 
if  any  one  wishing  to  make  an  impression  on  one 
who  had  received  great  benefits,  were  to  bring  his 
benefactor  himself  to  supplicate  him"  (Chrysos- 
tom). 

5.  "That  ye  present  your  bodies"  (i).  The 
verb  is  connected  with  sacrifice.  "Present,"  says 
Dr.  Stifler,  "is  a  temple  term  for  the  bringing 
thither  of  anything  to  God.  So  Jesus  was  pre- 
sented (Lk.  2:22),  and  so  Paul  would  present 
each  believer  (Col.  i :  28).  He  entreats  the  Ro- 
mans to  make  themselves  a  sacrificial  offering  to 
God.  The  word  'present'  occurs  first  in  the 
epistle  at  6:  13,  a  verse  which  this  chapter  now 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  189 

unfolds.  It  is  there  translated  'yield,'  'Bodies' 
is  the  comprehensive  term  for  the  whole  man, 
body,  soul,  and  spirit  (i  Thess.  5:  23).  It  is 
equivalent  to  'yourselves,'  but  better  suited  than 
the  latter  word  to  Paul's  sacrificial  idea." 

6.  "A  living  sacrifice"  (i).  The  sacrificial 
victims  under  the  old  covenant  were  slain.  But 
since  the  onei  sacrifice  for  all  has  been  accom- 
plished on  Calvary  there  is  no  further  need  of 
dead  sacrifices.  What  God  wants  is  that  we 
make  a  present  of  ourselves  to  Him,  as  living 
sacrifices,  putting  ourselves  into  His  hand,  for 
His  pleasure. 

7.  "Holy"  (i).  We  are  "holy  brethren" 
(Heb.  3:1),  by  reason  of  the  substitutionary 
sacrificial  work  of  the  Son  of  God  on  our  behalf ; 
"we  are  sanctified  (made  holy)  through  the  offer- 
ing of  the  body  of  Jesus  Christ  once  for  all" 
(Heb.  10:  10). 

8.  "Acceptable  unto  God"  (i).  How  won- 
derful it  is  that  we  are  permitted  and  enabled  to 
make  an  acceptable  offering,  who  were  once  "sin- 
ners of  the  Gentiles !"  The  glory  for  it  all  be- 
longs to  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ ;  we  are  "accepted 
in  the  Beloved,  in  Whom  we  have  redemption 
through  His  blood"  (Eph.  1:6,  7). 

9.  "Which  is  your  reasonable  service"  (i). 
The  adjective  here  is  "logical."  Alford  renders 
it  "rational,"  and  remarks  that  it  "is  opposed  to 
carnal  or  fleshly  (see  Heb.  7: 16)."  So  Chrysos- 
tom:    "having  in  it  nothing  corporeal,  nothing 


I90  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

gross,  nothing  subject  to  sense."  The  contrast 
is  between  the  fleshly  sacrifices  of  Judaism  and 
the  "spiritual  sacrifices"  of  the  new  dispensation 
(compare  i  Pet.  2:5;  Jno.  4:23,  24). 

10.  "And  be  not  conformed  to  this  age:  but 
be  ye  transfigured"  (2).  The  two  verbs  used 
here,  usually  translated  ''conformed"  and  "trans- 
formed," are  radically  different  from  each  other : 

(i)  The  former  is  from  suschematiso,  "to 
fashion  alike"  {Strong),  or  "to  become  like- 
shaped"  (//.  A.  W.  Meyer).  To  be  conformed 
to  this  age  is  to  yield  oneself  to  it,  following  the 
line  of  least  resistance,  as  jelly  in  a  mould,  until 
one  becomes  like  the  age,  having  given  up  "the 
good  fight  of  faith."  Thus  Demas  forsook  Paul, 
"having  loved  this  present  age"  (2  Tim.  4:  10), 
and  forgot  Him  "Who  gave  Himself  for  our  sins 
that  He  might  deliver,  us  from  this  present  evil 
age,  according  to  the  will  of  God  and  our  Father" 
(Gal.  1:4).  The  word  translated  "conformed" 
is  rendered  in  i  Pet.  i :  14,  "fashioning  your- 
selves according." 

(2)  On  the  other  hand,  the  word  translated 
"transformed"  is  from  metamorphoo,  which 
gives  us  our  English  word  "metamorphosis,"  and 
means  literally  "transfigured."  The  same  Greek 
word  is  used  in  the  gospel  accounts  of  the  trans- 
figuration on  the  mount  (see  Mt.  17:2;  Mk.  9: 
2).  Our  Lord's  transfiguration  did  not  result 
from  outward  conditions,  but  rather  from  an  un- 
veiling of  that  which  was  within.     So  we  are 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  191 

called  upon  here  to  "be  transfigured."  Quite  a 
different  word  is  rendered  "transform"  in  2  Cor. 
II :  13-15,  where  Satan  and  his  agents  are  said  to 
be  transformed  into  angels  and  messengers  of 
light  and  righteousness.  The  word  there  is 
metaschematizo,  and  is  defined  by  Strong  as 
meaning  "to  disguise."     The  same  word  reads 

"transferred"  ifi  i  Cor.  4:6 — "These  things 1 

have  in  a  figure  transferred  to  myself  and  to 
Apollos  for  your  sakes." 

II.  "By  the  renewing  of  your  mind"  (2). 
"Renewing"  occurs  but  once  elsewhere  in  the 
New  Testament.  In  Tit.  3 :  5  it  is  written,  "Not 
by  works  of  righteousness  which  we  have  done, 
but  according  to  His  mercy  He  saved  us,  by  the 
washing  of  regeneration,  and  renewing  of  the 
Holy  Spirit."  This  "renewing"  is  not  our  work, 
but  the  Spirit's.  We  are  not  called  upon  to  re- 
new our  minds  in  order  that  we  may  be  trans- 
figured :  we  are  only  to  yield  ourselves  unto  God, 
and  He  does  all  the  rest.  In  other  words,  as  Al- 
ford  puts  it,  "the  renewing  of  your  mind  is  not 
the  instrument  by  which,  but  the  manner  in 
which  the  metamorphosis  takes  place:  that 
wherein  it  consists."  The  process  is  set  forth 
clearly  enough  in  2  Cor.  3:18,  where  it  is  writ- 
ten, "But  we  all,  with  unveiled  face  reflecting  as 
a  mirror  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are  transfigured 
(metamorphoumetha)  into  the  same  image  from 
glory  to  glory,  as  by  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord"  (Im- 
proved Version). 


192  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

12.  "That  ye  may  prove  what  is  that  good, 
and  acceptable,  and  perfect,  will  of  God"  (2). 
The  R.  V.  marginal  rendering  here  is :  "that  ye 
may  prove  what  is  the  will  of  God,  even  the  thing 
which  is  good  and  acceptable  and  perfect." 
"Prove"  here  has  the  force  of  "discern"  or 
"recognize." 

Dr.  Stifler  warns  us  to 

"beware  of  the  chapter  mark  which  cuts  off  these  two 
verses  from  what  precedes,  as  if  an  entirely  new 
thought  were  taken  up  with  chapter  12.  These  two 
verses  are  intimately  connected  with  the  summing 
up  at  the  close  of  chapter  11.  That  summary  led 
Paul  to  adoring  worship  as'  he  viewed  God's  wide- 
reaching  plans.  And  the  idea  of  these  two  verses  is 
worship  evoked  and  provoked  by  the  same  view.  The 
Romans  are  to  present  themselves  for  a  rational  service, 
a  worship  in  which  the  spiritual  reason  leads.  This 
worship  is  impossible  except  by  men  dissevered  from 
conformity  to  the  world.  He  who  is  ruled  by  the  world's 
spirit  and  pursuits,  to  whom  the  world  is  the  only  great 
thing,  cannot  worship.  The  spring  of  the  worship,  as 
well  as  its  power,  is  just  what  it  was  in  Paul,  a  mind  that 
discerns  God's  will  in  the  dispensational  ordering  of  the 
world  to  bring  about  its  ultimate  salvation  (see  Eph.  3: 
14-21),  a  mind  that  sees  that  will  as  good  and  acceptable 
and  perfect.  When  the  corner-stone  of  creation  was  laid, 
all  the  sons  of  God  shouted  for  joy  (Job  38:  6,  7)  ;  and 
he,  too,  will  worship,  who  sees  the  corner-stone  laid  by 
God  in  Christ  for  the  new  creation.  It  takes  mind  (v.  2) 
to  know  mind  (11:34).  These  two  mentions  of  the 
word  look  each  other  in  the  face  across  the  chapter  bar, 
and  man's  mind  in  its  mortal  activity  never  acts  normally 
except  in  adoring  worship.  'Present  your  bodies'  is  the 
first  step.    'That  ye  may  prove  the  will'  is  then,  first  of 


THB  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  193 

all,  His  will  in  Christ  for  the  redeeming  of  the  nations, 
Jew  and  Gentile.  And  only  as  this  will  is  known  can 
any  one  see  how  he  is  himself  to  act.  The  renewed 
mind  dwelling  on  the  sublime  purposes  of  God  gains  an 
increasing  delicacy  of  discernment  of  its  own  moral 
action,  and  is  prepared  for  personal  guidance  in  all  ques- 
tions of  duty  and  living,  and  to  occupy  spiritual  offices 
acceptably.  It  is  at  this  point  that  Paul  branches  off  on 
duties.  The  qualification  to  discharge  them  is  a  knowl- 
edge of  God's  ways." 

II.  The  Yielded  Life  in  Service  (12:3-8). 

1.  "For  I  say"  (3).  The  apostle  speaks  with 
authority,  "through  the  grace  (i.  e.,  the  gift) 
given  unto"  him. 

2.  "To  every  man"  (3).  "He  says  it  not  to 
this  person  or  that  person  only,  but  to  ruler  and 
ruled,  to  bond  and  free,  to  simple  and  wise,  to 
woman  and  man"  (Chrysostom.) 

3.  "Not  to  think  of  himself  more  highly  than 
he  ought  to  think"  (3).  "There  is  a  play  on 
the  words  here  in  the  original,  which  can  only 
be  clumsily  conveyed  in  another  language :  'not 
to  be  highminded,  above  that  which  he  ought  to 
be  minded,  but  to  be  so  minded  as  to  be  sober- 
minded' "  (Alford). 

4.  "According  as  God  hath  dealt  to  every 
man  the  measure  of  faith"  (3).  Reference  is 
made  here  to  the  differing  gifts  for  service  in  the 
church  which  is  the  body  of  Christ.  "But  now 
hath  God  set  the  members  every  one  of  them  in 
the  body,  as  it  hath  pleased  him"  (i  Cor.  12 :  18). 


194  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

5.  "We are  one  body  in  Christ,  and  every 

one  members  one  of  another"  (5).  This  is  il- 
lustrated in  verse  4,  as  in  i  Cor.  12:  12,  by  the 
human  body,  which,  though  it  is  one  body,  has 
many  members  with  differing  functions. 

6.  "Having  then  gifts"  (6-8).  As  these  gifts 
differ  "according  to  the  grace  that  is  given  to  us," 
that  is  according  to  the  will  of  God  Who  bestows 
the  gifts,  we  are  to  minister,  each  one  according 
to  his  own  gift  and  place  in  the  body.  There  are 
seven  gifts  enumerated  (compare  Eph.  4:8-12; 
I  Cor.  12:28).  The  seven  gifts  are  named  in 
order  in  this  passage,  and  believers  are  here  ex- 
horted, each  to  minister  according  to  his  own 
gift  from  God  by  the  Spirit : 

( I )  "Whether  prophecy,  let  us  prophesy  ac- 
cording to  the  proportion  of  faith"  (6).  The 
New  Testament  prophet  is  one  that  "speaketh 
unto  men  to  edification  and  exhortation  and  com- 
fort" (i  Cor.  14:3).  A  prophet  is  a  forth- 
teller  of  the  mind  of  God.  The  Old  Testament 
prophets  were  called  upon  to  do  this  apart  from 
the  written  Word,  for  the  Word  of  God  was  not 
yet  complete;  but,  now  that  the  Scriptures  are 
finished,  the  prophet  of  God  speaks  according  to 
that  which  is  written.  To  be  a  prophet  is  a  high 
privilege,  and  this  gift  is  the  first  named  here. 
In  I  Cor.  14:  I  we  are  exhorted  to  "follow  after 
love,  and  desire  spiritual  gifts,  but  rather  that  ye 
may  prophesy."  It  is  a  great  thing  to  be  a 
mouthpiece  for  the  Spirit  of  God.     Yet  this  must 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK,  19s 

be  done  within  certain  well-defined  limits :  the 
prophet  must  "prophesy  according  to  the  propor- 
tion of  faith."  Dr.  Stifler  says  that  "faith  does 
not  mean  here  body  of  doctrine.  It  is  the  proph- 
et's own  personal  trust.  There  was  dealt  to  him 
a  measure  of  faith  (verse  3  above)  for  this  work. 
God  gave  him  an  insight  into  the  gospel  of  Christ. 
Let  his  prophecy  not  go  beyond  that  and  become 
vainglorious  and  arrogant.  Men  who  have  an 
office  are  under  strong  temptation  to  go  beyond 
what  they  know  in  it.  Thus  they  greatly  injure 
themselves  in  coming  to  believe  the  utterances  of 
their  own  ignorance,  and  they  mislead  others, 
who  believe  them  because  they  are  accredited 
teachers.  Let  the  prophet  rigidly  limit  his  gift 
by  the  faith  of  his  gift." 

(2)  "Or  ministry,  let  us  wait  on  our  min- 
istering" (7,  R.  F.).  Preachers  are  often  spoken 
of  as  "the  ministry,"  as  if  they  were  the  only 
ministers  in  the  church.  In  a  very  true  sense  the 
whole  church  is  a  body  of  ministers,  for  the  word 
means  a  servant.  The  passage  here  reads,  ''eite 
diakonian,  en  te  diakonia," — "if  service,  in  the 
service."  But,  it  may  be  observed  that  the  Greek 
word  for  servant  is  the  word  for  deacon ;  and 
possibly  the  office  of  deacon  is  in  view  here. 
Let  them  be  occupied  with  their  diaconate,  that 
is,  their  ministry  or  service.  In  connection  with 
the  word,  "ministry,"  it  is  interesting  to  note  the 
change  made  by  the  Revisers  in  Eph.  4:  11,  12, 
where  the  purpose  of  the  risen  Christ  in  bestow- 


196  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

ing  gifts  upon  His  church  is  set  forth.  The  King 
James  Version  reads : 

"And  He  gave  some,  apostles;  and  some,  prophets; 
and  some,  evangelists ;  and  some,  pastors  and  teachers ;" 

These  persons  are  what  the  modern  church  calls 
"the  ministry."  They  are  only  Christ's  gifts  be- 
stowed upon  "the  church  which  is  His  body,"  for 
a  very  definite  purpose ;  namely,  according  to  the 
common  Version : 

"for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  for  the  work  of  the 
ministry,  for  the  edifying  of  the  body  of  Christ :" 

This  is  confusing,  for  it  seems  to  separate  "the 
ministry"  into  a  class  distinct  from  "the  saints." 
Now  observe  the  Revised  rendering  of  the  pas- 
sage: 

"And  He  gave  some  to  be  apostles ;  and  some,  proph- 
ets ;  and  some,  evangelists ;  and  some,  pastors  and  teach- 
ers; for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints,  unto  the  work  of 
ministering,  unto  the  building  up  of  the  body  of  Christ." 

Still  clearer  is  the  191 1  Bible: 

"And  he  hath  given  some,  apostles ;  and  some,  proph- 
ets; and  some,  evangelists;  and  some,  pastors  and 
teachers ;  unto  the  perfecting  oe  the  saints  eor  the 
DOING  OF  SERVICE,  for  the  building  up  of  the  body  of 
Christ." 

(3)   "Or  he  that  teacheth,  on  teaching"  (7). 
The  gift  to  teach  is  necessarily  in  some  degree 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  197 

included  in  the  gift  of  prophecy.  The  teacher 
is  an  expounder  of  the  Word  of  God.  Let  him 
expound  that  Word  "according  to  the  proportion 
of  faith."  Let  him  "teach  in  the  sphere,  within 
the  bounds,  of  the  teaching  allotted  to  him  by 
God,  or  for  which  God  has  given  him  the  faculty" 
(Alford). 

(4)  "Or  he  that  exhorteth,  on  exhortation" 
(8).  A  most  interesting  word  is  this :  ''eite  ho 
parakalon,  en  te  paraklesei."  Notice  here  that 
the  root  word  for  Paraclete  is  used.  The  same 
word  in  its  verb  form  is  translated  "beseech"  in 
the  first  verse  of  our  chapter.  Within  limita- 
tions, the  exhorter  is  to  be  a  paraclete  or  com- 
forter to  his  fellow-believers.  This  gift  also  is 
closely  connected  with  the  gift  to  prophesy.  In 
I  Cor.  14:  31  it  is  written: 

"For  ye  may  all  prophesy  one  by  one,  that  all  may 
learn,  and  all  may  be  comforted  (Gk.,  parakalontai) .'^ 

In  I  Tim.  4 :  13  the  gift  of  teaching  is  linked  with 
that  of  exhortation : 

"Till  1  come,  give  attendance  to  reading,  to  exhorta- 
tion (paraklesei),  to  doctrine"  {didaskalia,  translated 
"teaching"  in  Rom.  12:7). 

(5)  "He  that  giveth,  let  him  do  it  with  sim- 
plicity" (8).  Some  have  supposed  that  this  re- 
fers to  those  who  were  appointed  in  the  church 
for  the  giving  of  alms  to  the  poor,  while  others 
hold  that  it  includes  those  who  give  money  to  the 


198  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

church  for  the  support  of  the  gospel.  In  any 
case,  the  principle  is  the  same.  For  ''simplicity" 
the  Revision  reads  "liberality;"  the  Greek  is 
"singleness"  (compare  Mt.  6:22;  Lk.  11:34; 
Eph.  6:5;  Col.  3:22). 

(6)  "He  that  ruleth,  with  diligencse"  (8). 
"This,"  declares  Dr.  Stifler,  "is  a  faulty  render- 
ing. The  apostolic  church  had  no  rulers.  It 
ought  to  be,  'He  that  presides'  or  'superintends.' 
Paul  may  have  referred  in  this  term  to  their 
elders  (i  Thess.  5:12;  i  Tim.  5:17)."  Dean 
Alford  says:  "He  that  ruleth  or  presideth — 
but  over  w^hat?  If  over  the  church  exclusively, 
we  come  back  to  offices  again:  and  it  is  hardly 
likely  that  the  rulers  of  the  church,  as  such, 
w^ould  be  introduced  so  low  down  in  the  list,  or 
by  so  very  general  a  term,  as  this.  In  i  Tim.  3 : 
4,  5,  12,  we  have  the  verb  used  of  presiding  over 
a  man's  own  household:  and  in  its  absolute 
usage  here,  I  do  not  see  why  that  also  should  not 
be  included."  Mr.  Grant  has  a  helpful  note. 
He  says :  "Next,  we  have  'He  that  ruleth'  or  'He 
that  leadeth.'  The  leader  is  of  necessity,  to  a 
large  extent,  the  ruler  also,  but  there  is  no  abso- 
lute rule,  except  that  of  the  Spirit,  in  the  church  . 
of  God;  but  he  that  realizes  that  he  is  leading 
others  has,  of  necessity,  much  responsibility  at- 
taching to  this.  If  his  word  is  weighty,  he  must 
be  the  more  careful.  The  apostle  says  here,  he 
must  rule  or  lead  'with  diligence,'  that  is,  not 
careless  of  what  he  is  doing,  not  at  random,  but 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK,  199 

as  giving  thought  and  care  to  that  which  is  hav- 
ing effect  upon  the  minds  of  others." 

(7)  "He  that  sheweth  mercy,  with  cheerful- 
ness" (8).  The  word  "mercy"  as  used  here  has 
no  reference  to  sins,  nor  to  the  forgiveness  of 
sins.  The  reference  is  to  those  in  the  church 
having  a  special  gift  to  aid  those  who  are  in 
trouble.  Let  them  do  it  ''with  cheerfulness,"  for 
it  is  a  glad  service.  Perhaps  this  is  the  gift  of 
''helps"  mentioned  in  i  Cor.  12:28. 

III.  The  Yikldkd  Ltfk   in   Fellowship    (12: 
9-i6a). 

1.  "Let  love  be  without  dissimulation"  (9). 
The  Revision  reads,  "without  hypocrisy,"  and 
others  translate,  "Let  love  be  unfeigned."  Love 
is  not  love  unless  it  be  real.  This  exhortation 
comes  first  in  the  paragraph  on  Christian  com- 
munion, for  love  is  the  basis  of  all  real  fellow- 
ship in  the  body  of  Christ.  The  fruit  of  the 
Spirit  is,  first  of  all,  love  (Gal.  5  :  22). 

2.  "Abhor  that  which  is  evil ;  cleave  to  that 
which  is  good"  (9).  The  love  of  evil  and  the 
love  of  good  are  mutually  exclusive  passions. 
Therefore,  "ye  that  love  Jehovah,  hate  evil"  (Ps. 
97:  10).  If  ye  would  "learn  to  do  well,"  then 
ye  must  "cease  to  do  evil"  (Isa.  1:16,  17). 
Good  and  evil  are  two  masters  which  no  man  can 
serve  together  (Mt.  6:24).  Let  us  not  fail  to 
observe  the  connection  in  which  we  find  this  ex- 
hortation ;   it  is  preceded  and  followed  by  words 


2QO  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

about  love.  Our  love  for  one  another,  then,  is 
not  to  blind  us  to  the  evil  that  we  may  see  in  one 
another.  We  are  to  abhor  the  evil,  even  while 
loving  the  person  in  whom  we  may  find  the  evil. 
And  in  such  a  case  we  shall  be  the  more  faithful 
in  seeking  to  deliver  the  person  from  the  evil  that 
entangles  him  and  help  him  to  cleave  to  that 
which  is  good. 

3.  "Be  kindly  affectioned  one  to  another 
with  brotherly  love"  (10).  Weymouth  reads 
here,  "As  for  brotherly  love,  be  affectionate  to 
one  another."  It  is  not  enough  to  love:  we 
ought  to  demonstrate  the  love  we  have  toward 
one  another.  "Demonstrativeness"  is  hateful 
when  true  affection  is  absent;  but  where  love 
abides  it  ought  to  manifest  itself. 

4.  "In  honor  preferring  one  another"  (10). 
This  is  true  humility,  or  meekness,  always  the 
fruit  of  the  Spirit  (Gal.  5:23).  In  Eph.  5:  18- 
21  the  Spirit-filled  church  is  seen,  with  the  mem- 
bers submitting  themselves  "one  to  another  in  the 
fear  of  Christ"  (R.  V.).  William  Wye  Smith's 
Scotch  New  Testament  has  it:  "And  be-na  ye 
f ou'  wi'  wine,  in  whilk  is  riot ;  but  be  ye  fou'  o' 
the  Spirit,  speakin'  amang  yersels  in  psalms  and 
hymns,  and  godly  sangs,  liltin'  and  makin'  music 
i'  yere  hearts  till  the  Lord,  at  a'  times  giean 
thanks  for  a'  things,  i'  the  name  o'  oor  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  till  yere  God  and  Faither.  Pittin'  yersels 
aneath  ane  anither,  in  the  fear  o'  Christ."  There 
is  no  power  in  the  universe  that  can  produce  a 


THB  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  201 

picture  like  that  but  the  power  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
of  God. 

5.  "Not  slothfulin  business"  ( 1 1 ) .  A  wrong 
translation!  The  Revisers  render  the  phrase, 
"In  diligence  not  slothful."  So  also,  Young,  the 
Englishman's  Greek  New  Testament,  Grant,  and 
many  other  translators.  Darby  reads,  "As  to 
diligent  zealousness,  not  slothful."  Weymouth's 
rendering  is,  "Do  not  be  indolent  when  zeal  is 
required."  This  is  somewhat  paraphrastic,  but 
it  probably  hits  upon  the  true  meaning  of  the 
passage. 

6.  "Fervent  in  spirit"  (11).  Lukewarmness 
has  no  place  in  the  Christian  life  (Rev.  3:15, 
16).  It  is  "the  effectual  fervent  prayer  of  a 
righteous  man"  that  "availeth  much"  (Jas.  5: 
16). 

7.  "Serving  the  Lord"  (11).  This  is  the 
climax  of  all  that  precedes  in  the  entire  chapter. 
Moffatt  puts  the  whole  of  the  nth  verse  thus: 
"Never  let  your  zeal  flag;  maintain  the  spiritual 
glow ;  serve  the  Lord." 

8.  "Rejoicing  in  hope"  (12).  "Rejoicing  in 
the  hope"  is  how  it  is  written  in  the  Greek. 
What  is  referred  to  is  "the  hope  of  the  gospel" 
(Col.  1:23),  the  "blessed  hope"  of  our  Lord's 
return  (Tit.  2:  11-13). 

9.  "Patient  in  tribulation"  (12).  This  we 
had  in  the  5th  chapter,  with  the  basis  for  it.  The 
Christian  is  able  to  glory  in  tribulation:  know- 
ing that  tribulation  worketh  patience;    and  pa- 


202  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

tience,  experience;  and  experience,  hope;  and 
hope  maketh  not  ashamed;  because  the  love  of 
God  is  shed  abroad  in  our  hearts  by  the  Holy 
Ghost  which  is  given  unto  us." 

10.  "Continuing  instant  in  prayer"  (12). 
For  "instant,"  read  "steadfastly"  {R.  V.).  This 
entire  verse  also  ought  to  be  read  together. 
Conybeare  and  Hov^son  translate  it :  "In  your 
hope  be  joyful ;  in  your  sufferings  be  steadfast ; 
in  your  prayers  be  unw^earied." 

11.  "Distributing  to  the  necessity  of  saints" 
(13).  "Distributing"  is  better  than  the  Revis- 
ers' "communicating;"  but  the  1911  Bible  is  bet- 
ter than  either :  "contributing  to  the  necessities 
of  the  saints."  We  are  to  share  w^hat  v^e  have 
v^ith  one  another  and  thus  relieve  each  other's 
needs  (Heb.  13:  16). 

12.  "Given  to  hospitality"  (13).  The  Greek 
is  "pursuing  hospitality" — running  after  it.  We 
have  here  not  the  usual  word  for  "given,"  and  it 
is  not  elsewhere  in  the  New  Testament  so  trans- 
lated. We  have  the  same  English  expression, 
"given  to  hospitality,"  in  i  Tim.  3 : 2,  but  in  the 
original  it  is  merely  "hospitable" — philoxenon, 
literally,  fond  of  guests.  But  in  the  passage  now 
before  us  in  Rom.  12: 13  it  is  "hospitality  pur- 
suing"— philoxenian  diokentes,  literally,  running 
after  a  fondness  for  guests — addicted  to  hospi- 
tality as  to  a  strong  habit.  It  is  a  fine  old  habit, 
all  the  sweeter  as  it  becomes  rarer.  Let  us  "be 
not  forgetful  to  entertain  strangers,  for  thereby 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK,  203 

some  have  entertained  angels  unawares"   (Heb. 
13:2;   Gen.  18:  3;   19:  2). 

13.  "Bless  them  which  persecute  you;  bless, 
and  curse  not"  (14).  This  is  the  principle  of 
Mt.  5:44;  Lk.  6:28;  I  Cor.  4:  12.  Unnatural, 
and  impossible,  except  by  the  power  of  the  Holy 
Spirit;  but  this  is  the  way  of  blessedness. 

14.  "Rejoice  with  them  that  do  rejoice,  and 
weep  with  them  that  weep"  (15).  This  is  true 
sympathy,  or  fellow-feeling.  It  is  often  more 
natural  to  weep  with  weeping  ones  than  to  re- 
joice with  rejoicing  ones,  for  this  latter  form  of 
sympathy  is  frequently  hindered  by  envy ;  but  in 
"the  church  which  is  His  body,"  the  organism 
consisting  of  His  born-again  ones,  the  indwelling 
Holy  Spirit,  when  unhindered,  always  produces 
sympathy  among  the  members  of  the  body ;  "and 
whether  one  member  suffer,  all  the  members  suf- 
fer with  it ;  or  one  member  be  honoured,  all  the 
members  rejoice  with  it"  (i    Cor.  12:  26). 

15.  "Be  of  the  same  mind  one  toward  an- 
other" (16).  The  thought  is  closely  connected 
with  that  which  precedes  it.  Weymouth  trans- 
lates: "Have  full  sympathy  with  one  another." 
Darby:  "Have  the  same  respect  one  for  an- 
other." Moffatt:  "Keep  in  harmony  with  one 
another." 

16.  "Mind  not  high  things,  but  condescend 
to  men  of  low  estate  (16).  "Condescend"  is 
rejected  by  Stifler  as  an  unfortunate  word: 
"Condescension  has  no  place  in  the  church.  Some 


204  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

render,  'be  carried  away  with'  the  lowly — give 
yourself  to  them.  The  world  neglects  and  de- 
spises them;  Christ  loves  them  and  died  for 
them.  There  is  often  more  genuine  worth  and 
manhood  in  the  alleys  than  in  the  avenues ;  and 
Christian  love  goes  where  love  is  most  needed. 
It  is  'carried  away'  in  the  service  of  need.  Christ 
in  help  to  one  lowly  woman  was  so  'carried  away' 
that  He  had  no  desire  to  eat  (Jno.  4:31,  32)." 
The  191 1  Bible  reads:  "Set  not  your  mind  on 
high  things,  but  go  along  with  the  lowly."  Wake- 
field has  it :  "Set  not  your  mind  on  high  things, 
but  be  guided  by  humility." 

IV.  The  Yielded  Life  in  Relation  to  the 
World  (12:  i6b-2i). 

1.  "Be  not  wise  in  your  own  conceits.  Rec- 
ompense to  no  man  evil  for  evil"  (16,  17). 
This  is  quoted  from  Prov.  3 :  7,  which,  according 
to  the  Septuagint  version,  reads:  "Be  not  wise 
in  thine  own  conceit ;  but  fear  God,  and  depart 
from  evil."  Rotherham,  in  the  Romans  citation, 
reads:  "Be  not  getting  presumptuous  in  your 
own  opinion:  unto  one  evil  for  evil  rendering." 
In  I  Pet.  3  :  9  it  is  written  :  "Not  rendering  evil 
for  evil,  or  railing  for  railing:  but  contrariwise 
blessing;  knowing  that  ye  are  thereunto  called, 
that  ye  should  inherit  a  blessing." 

2.  "Provide  things  honest  in  the  sight  of  all 
men"  (17).  This  intensely  important  word,  re- 
peated in  effect  in  2  Cor.  8:21,  and  elsewhere 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  205 

often  insisted  upon,  is  another  Old  Testament 
quotation,  being  from  Prov.  3:4,  in  the  Sep- 
tuagint. 

3.  "If  it  be  possible,  as  much  as  lieth  in  you, 
live  peaceably  with  all  men"  (18).  This  is 
closely  connected  with  what  follows.  Dr.  Young 
gives  the  whole  paragraph  thus:  "If  possible 
— so  far  as  in  you — with  all  men  being  in  peace ; 
not  avenging  yourselves,  beloved,  but  give  place 
to  the  wrath,  for  it  hath  been  written,  'Ven- 
geance is  mine,  I  will  recompense  again,  saith 
the  Lord;'  if,  then,  thine  enemy  hunger,  feed 
him;  if  he  doth  thirst,  give  him  drink;  for 
this  doing,  coals  of  fire  thou  shalt  heap  upon  his 
head ;  be  not  overcome  by  the  evil,  but  overcome, 
in  the  good,  the  evil."  The  first  part  of  the  quo- 
tation is  from  Deut.  32 :  35  and  is  cited  again  in 
Heb.  10:30.  The  remainder  of  the  passage  is 
from  Prov.  25:21,  22.  "He  who  cannot  be 
moved  from  the  basis  of  love,"  says  Dr.  Stifler, 
"is  a  victor  even  though  he  cannot  win  his  enemy. 
To  win  himself  is  a  much  greater  triumph." 

Now  let  the  reader  look  back  over  this  marvel- 
lous chapter.  It  is  full  of  impossibilities  from 
the  natural  standpoint,  yet  it  is  the  practical, 
normal  Christian  life.  Victory  comes  through  a 
definite  yielding  of  the  body  into  God's  hands  as 
a  living  sacrifice.  This  is  indeed  our  "reasona- 
ble service."  Here  is  where  world-conformity 
ends  and  heavenly  transfiguration  begins.  Thus, 
and  thus  only,  is  the  goal  to  be  reached — the  goal 


2o6  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

of  triumph.  Thus,  and  only  thus,  can  God's 
child  avoid  being  overcome  of  evil.  Thus  only 
can  he  overcome  evil  with  good. 

V.  The  Yielded  Liee  in  Relation  to  Civil 
Government  (13:1-7).. 

1.  "Let  every  soul  be  subject  unto  the  high- 
er powers"  (i).  "It  has  been  well  observed," 
says  Alford,  "that  some  special  reason  must  have 
given  occasion  to  these  exhortations.  We  can 
hardly  attribute  it  to  the  seditious  spirit  of  the 
Jews  at  Rome,  as  their  influence  in  the  Christian 
church  there  would  not  be  great;  indeed,  from 
Acts  28  the  two  seem  to  have  been  remarkably 
distinct.  But  disobedience  to  the  civil  authorities 
may  have  arisen  from  mistaken  views  among  the 
Christians  themselves  as  to  the  nature  of  Christ's 
kingdom,  and  its  relation  to  existing  powers  of 
this  world.  And  such  mistakes  would  naturally 
be  rifest  there,  where  the  fountain  of  earthly 
power  was  situated:  and  there  also  best  and 
most  effectually  met  by  these  precepts  coming 
from  apostolic  authority.  The  way  for  them  is 
prepared  by  verses  17  ff.  of  the  foregoing  chap- 
ter.  I  Pet.  2 :  13  ff.  is  parallel."  The  word  for 
"be  subject"  is  more  literally  rendered,  "submit 
himself."  And  the  exhortation  is  for  "every 
soul :"  on  which  Dr.  Stifler  remarks  that  "none 
is  exempt,  not  even  the  pope." 

2.  "For  there  is  no  pov^rer  but  of  God:  the 
powers  that  be  are  ordained  of  God"  ( i ) .    The 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  207 

word  for  ''power"  throughout  this  passage  is 
exousia,  and  refers  to  civil  governmental  au- 
thority. "Civil  government  has  its  source  in 
God,  and  all  constituted  power  is  appointed  and 
ordained  by  him.  The  cruel  abuses  in  govern- 
ment are  no  necessary  part  of  them  and  do  not 
invalidate  their  divine  charter  any  more  than  the 
abuses  of  marriage  rob  it  of  its  sacredness.  Any 
government  is  preferable  to  anarchy,  just  as 
poorly  enforced  marriage  laws  are  better  than 
none.     Man  abuses  all  God's  gifts"  {StiUer). 

3.  "Whosoever  therefore  resisteth  the  power 
resisteth  the  ordinance  of  God"  (2).  The 
writers  have  labored  hard  and  long  over  this  sen- 
tence. Dr.  Stifler  says  that  teaching  and  agita- 
tion for  better  government  is  not  forbidden  here 
"if  these  do  not  lead  to  resistance,  but  under  this 
principle  it  is  hard  to  see  how  a  Christian  can 
lead  in  a  rebellion.  Paul's  words  are  unmistaka- 
ble, and  yet  there  stand  Cromwell  and  Washing- 
ton !"  H.  A.  W.  Meyer  says  that  "Paul  has  cer- 
tainly expressed  the  divine  right  of  magistracy, 
which  Christian  princes  specially  designate  by  the 
expression  'by  the  grace  of  God'  (since  the  time 
of  Louis  the  Pious).  And  ai  de  ousai,  the  ex- 
tant, actually  existing,  allows  no  exception  such 
as  that  possibly  of  tyrants  or  usurpers  (in  oppo- 
sition to  Reiche).  The  Christian,  according  to 
Paul,  ought  to  regard  any  magistracy  whatever, 
provided  its  rule  over  him  subsists  de  facto,  as  di- 
vinely ordained,  since  it  has  not  come  into  exist- 


2o8  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

ence  without  the  operation  of  God's  will;  and 
this  appHes  also  to  tyrannical  or  usurped  power, 
although  such  a  power,  in  the  counsel  of  God,  is 
perhaps  destined  merely  to  be  temporary  and 
transitional.  From  this  point  of  view,  the  Chris- 
tian obeys  not  the  human  caprice  and  injustice, 
but  the  will  of  God,  who — in  connection  with  His 
plan  of  government  inaccessible  to  human  insight 
— has  presented  even  the  unworthy  and  unright- 
eous ruler  as  the  ousa  exousia  (the  existing  au- 
thority— the  power  that  is),  and  has  made  him 
the  instrument  of  His  measures.  Questions  as 
to  special  cases — such  as  how  the  Christian  is  to 
conduct  himself  in  political  catastrophes,  what 
magistracy  he  is  to  look  upon  in  such  times  as  the 
ousa  exousia,  as  also,  how  he,  if  the  command  of 
the  magistrate  is  against  the  command  of  God, 
is  at  any  rate  to  obey  God  rather  than  men  (Ac. 
5:29),  etc. — Paul  here  leaves  unnoticed,  and 
only  gives  the  main  injunction  of  obedience.  By 
no  means,  however,  are  we  to  think  only  of  the 
magisterial  office  as  instituted  by  God  (Chrysos- 
torn,  Oecumenius,  and  others),  but  rather  of  the 
magistracy  in  its  concrete  persons  and  members 
as  the  bearers  of  the  divinely  ordained  office." 
Dean  Alford  observes  "that  the  apostle  here  pays 
no  regard  to  the  question  of  the  duty  of  Chris- 
tions  in  revolutionary  movements.  His  precepts 
regard  an  established  power,  be  it  what  it  may. 
It,  in  all  matters  lawful,  we  are  bound  to  obey. 
But  even  the  parental  power  does  not  extend  to 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  209 

things  unlawful.  If  the  civil  power  commands 
us  to  violate  the  law  of  God,  we  must  obey  God 
before  man.  If  it  commands  us  to  disobey  the 
common  laws  of  humanity,  or  the  sacred  institu- 
tions of  our  country,  our  obedience  is  due  to  the 
higher  and  more  general  law,  rather  than  to  the 
lower  and  particular.  These  distinctions  must 
be  drawn  by  the  wisdom  granted  to  Christians  in 
the  varying  circumstances  of  human  affairs; 
they  are  all  only  subordinate  portions  of  the  great 
duty  of  obedience  to  law.  To  obtain,  by  lawful 
means,  the  removal  or  alteration  of  an  unjust  or 
unreasonable  law,  is  another  part  of  this  duty: 
for  all  authorities  among  men  must  be  in  accord 
with  the  highest  authority,  the  moral  sense.  But 
even  where  law  is  hard  and  unreasonable,  not 
disobedience,  but  legitimate  protest,  is  the  duty 
of  the  Christian." 

4.  "And  they  that  resist  shall  receive  to 
themselves  judgment"  (2).  The  King  James 
Version's  "damnation"  here  is  far  too  strong. 
The  Revisers'  word,  "judgment,"  is  to  be  pre- 
ferred above  "condemnation;"  for,  although 
God  may  judge  a  Christian,  He  cannot  condemn 
him.  The  thought  is  precisely  parallelled  in  i 
Cor.  1 1 :  29-32,  where  Christians  are  exhorted  to 
take  heed  how  they  partake  of  the  Lord's  Sup- 
per: 

"For  he  that  eateth  and  drinketh  unworthily,  eateth 
and  drinketh  judgment  to  himself,  not  discerning  the 
Lord's  body.    For  this  cause  many  are  weak  and  sickly 


210  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

among  you,  and  many  sleep.  For  if  we  would  judge 
ourselves,  we  should  not  be  judged.  But  when  we  are 
judged,  we  are  chastened  of  the  Lord,  that  we  should  not 
be  condemned  with  the  world." 

The  teaching  here,  then,  is  that  God  Himself 
will  deal  with  those  who  resist  the  authority  of 
*  civil  government.  In  resisting  ''the  powers  that 
be,"  they  are  resisting  Him ;  and  they  "shall  re- 
ceive to  themselves  judgment"  from  Him.  The 
judgment  may  come  through  the  powers,  but  it  is 
from  God,  nevertheless. 

5.  "For  rulers  are  not  a  terror  to  good  works, 
but  to  the  evil"  (3).  Tholuck  and  others  infer 
from  this  verse  that  Paul  wrote  the  epistle  prior 
to  the  terrible  persecutions  of  the  Christians  dur- 
ing Nero's  reign;  and  Alford  thinks  that  had 
this  been  otherwise,  the  principle  stated  by  the 
apostle  would  have  been  the  same,  though  he 
could  hardly  have  passed  so  apparent  an  excep- 
tion to  it  without  remark.  It  is  clear  that  the 
general  principle  is  what  is  in  mind  here,  rather 
than  its  application  in  specific  instances.  Gen- 
erally speaking,  rulers  are  not  a  terror  to  good 
works  but  to  the  evil.  If  one  would  be  free  from 
fear  of  the  civil  power,  then,  let  him  do  good  and 
he  will  have  praise  rather  than  punishment.  It 
is  true,  as  observed  by  Meyer,  that  when  Paul 
wrote  these  words,  "it  was  still  the  better  time  of 
Nero's  rule ;"  but,  as  the  same  writer  goes  on  to 
say,  "the  proposition  has  a  general  validity, 
which  is  based  on  the  divinely-ordained  position 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  211 

of  the  magistracy,  and  is  not  annulled  by  their  in- 
justices in  practice,  which  Paul  had  himself  so 
copiously  experienced."     Let  the  ruler  remember 

that  "he  is  a  minister  of  God for  good"  (v. 

4),  and  not  for  evil. 

6.  "But  if  thou  do  that  which  is  evil,  be 
afraid ;  for  he  beareth  not  the  sword  in  vain" 
(4).  Those  who  advocate  the  abolition  of  capi- 
tal punishment  forget  that  the  state  has  divine 
authority  for  bearing  the  sword  and  using  it. 
The  ruler  is  not  only  a  minister  of  God  for  good 
unto  well-doers,  but  he  is  also  "the  minister  of 
God,  a  revenger  to  execute  wrath  upon  him  that 
doet'h  evil."  The  original  charter  of  human  gov- 
ernment is  written  in  the  Noahic  Covenant,  and 
this  has  never  been  abrogated ;  it  remains  in  full 
force : 

"At  the  hand  of  every  man's  brother  will  I  require  the 
life  of  man.  Whoso  sheddeth  man's  blood,  by  man  shall 
his  blood  be  shed,  for  in  the  image  of  God  made  he  man" 
(Gen.  9:5,  6). 

7.  "Wherefore  ye  must  needs  be  subject,  not 
only  for  wrath,  but  also  for  conscience  sake" 

(5).  Christians  are  to  submit  themselves  to  the 
civil  authority,  not  in  fear  of  its  wrath,  but  in  obe- 
dience to  their  own  consciences  as  enlightened  by 
the  Word  of  God.  They  obey  the  government 
''for  the  Lord's  sake;  whether  it  be  to  the  king, 
as  supreme;  or  unto  governors,  as  unto  them 
that  are  sent  by  him  for  the  punishment  of  evil- 


212  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

doers,  and  for  the  praise  of  them  that  do  well. 
For  so  is  the  will  of  God,  that  with  well  doing  ye 
may  put  to  silence  the  ignorance  of  foolish  men : 
as  free,  and  not  using  your  liberty  for  a  cloke  of 
maliciousness,  but  as  the  servants  of  God.  Hon- 
our all  men.  Love  the  brotherhood.  Fear  God. 
Honour  the  king"  (i  Pet.  2:  13-17). 

8.  "For  for  this  cause  pay  ye  tribute  also" 
(6).  The  public  officers  must  be  supported, 
since  "they  are  God's  ministers,  attending  con- 
tinually upon"  the  exercise  of  their  duties  in  ad- 
ministering the  affairs  of  government.  ''Trib- 
ute," here,  is  direct  taxation  for  the  expenses  of 
state.  Custom,  in  verse  9,  is  toll,  or  tax  upon 
produce.  Tertullian  declared  that  what  the  Ro- 
mans lost  by  the  Christians  refusing  to  bring  of- 
ferings to  the  heathen  temples  was  more  tha"-! 
made  up  by  their  willing  payment  of  taxes. 

9.  "Render  therefore  to  all  their  dues"  (7). 
Whether  tribute,  or  custom,  or  fear,  or  honour, 
let  not  the  Christian  fail  in  any  respect  towards 
these  public  ordained  ministers  of  God  who  oc- 
cupy places  of  authority  over  him. 

VI.  The  Law  of  the  Yielded  Liee  (8-14). 

I.  "Owe  no  man  any  thing,  but  to  love  one 
another"  (8).  The  law  of  Sinai  provided 
against  debt :  "Thou  shalt  not  defraud  thy  neigh- 
bour, neither  rob  him:  the  wages  of  him  that  is 
hired  shall  not  abide  with  thee  all  night  until  the 
morning"    (Lev.    19:13).     And   elsewhere   the 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  213 

Word  warns  against  debt :  "The  rich  ruleth  over 
the  poor,  and  the  borrower  is  servant  to  the  lend- 
er*' (Prov.  22  :y).  But  there  is  one  debt  that  can 
never  be  fully  cancelled ;  namely,  the  debt  of  love. 
We  must  go  on  loving,  and  as  we  do  so  we  are 
in  principle  fulfilling  the  law  :  ''for  he  that  loveth 
another  hath  fulfilled  the  law,"  so  far  as  that  other 
is  concerned.  The  law  against  adultery,  killing, 
stealing,  lying,  coveting,  and  every  other  sin 
against  men,  is  all  summed  up  in  one  word,  "Thou 
shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself.  Love  work- 
eth  no  ill  to  his  neighbour :  therefore  love  is  the 
fulfilling  of  the  law"  (vs.  9,  10;  compare  Mt.  22 : 
39;  Lk.  10:29-37). 

2.  "And  that,  knowing  the  time,  that  now  it 
is  high  time  to  awake  out  of  sleep"  (11).  The 
great  New  Testament  incentive  to  holiness  is  now 
brought  forth.  "And  that"  ought  rather  to  read 
"And  this."  That  is,  "and  let  us  do  this"— live 
without  debt  except  to  love — for  this  great  reason 
added  to  all  the  others ;  nanjely,  that  "now  is  out 
salvation  nearer  than  when  we  (first)  believed" 
(see  R.  v.).  Our  Lord's  return  is  the  "salvation 
ready  to  be  revealed  in  the  last  time"  ( i  Pet.  i : 
5).  "The  night  is  far  spent,  the  day  is  at  hand: 
let  us  therefore  cast  off  the  works  of  darkness, 
and  let  us  put  on  the  armour  of  light.  Let  us 
walk  honestly,  as  in  the  day ;  not  in  rioting  and 
drunkenness,  not  in  chambering  and  wantonness, 
not  in  strife  and  envying.  But  put  ye  on  the  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  and  make  not  provision  for  the  flesh, 
to  fulfill  the  lusts  thereof" — i.  e.,  make  no  pro- 


214  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

vision  for  the  gratification  of  selfish  desires.  All 
this  will  be  accomplished  if  we  really  put  on  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  **So  we  say  of  friends,"  says 
Chrysostom:  "  'Such  an  one  has  put  on  such  an 
one,'  when  we  mean  to  describe  great  love  and  un- 
ceasing intercourse." 

Our  Lord  Himself  often  used  the  truth  of  His 
return  to  stimulate  His  disciples  to  watchfulness 
and  holiness,  and  so  also  did  the  writers  of  the 
New  Testament  epistles.  It  is  to  this  blessed  hope 
that  Paul  directs  his  readers  in  the  closing  para- 
graph of  Romans  13.  On  this  paragraph  Dean 
Alford  says : 

''Without  denying  the  legitimacy  of  an  individual  ap- 
plication of  this  truth,  and  the  importance  of  its  con- 
sideration for  all  Christians  of  all  ages,  a  fair  exposition 
of  this  passage  can  hardly  fail  to  recognize  the  fact  that 
the  apostle  here  as  well  as  elsewhere  (i  Thes.  4:  17;  i 
Cor.  15 :  51),  speaks  of  the  coming  of  the  Lord  as  rapidly 
approaching.  Prof.  Stuart  and  others  are  shocked  at  the 
idea,  as  being  inconsistent  with  the  inspiration  of  his 
writings.  How  this  can  be,  I  am  at  a  loss  to  imagine. 
'Of  that  day  and  hour  knoweth  no  man,  no  not  the 

ANGELS    IN    HEAVEN,    NOR    EVEN    THE    SoN,    BUT    THE   Fa" 

ther'  (Mk.  13:  32).  And  to  reason,  as  Stuart  does,  that 
because  St.  Paul  corrects  in  2  Thes.  2  the  mistake  of  im- 
agining it  to  be  immediately  at  hand  (or  even  actually 
come,  see  note  there),  therefore  he  did  not  himself 
expect  it  soon,  is  surely  quite  beside  the  purpose.  The 
fact  that  the  nearness  or  distance  of  that  day  was  un- 
known to  the  apostles,  in  no  way  affects  the  prophetic 
announcements  of  God's  Spirit  by  them,  concerning  its 
preceding  any  accompanying  circumstances.  The 'day  and 
hour'  formed  no  part  of  their  inspiration;  the  details 
of  the  event  did.     And  this  distinction  has  singularly 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  215 

and  providentially  turned  out  to  the  edification  of  all 
subsequent  ages.  While  the  prophetic  declaration  of  the 
events  of  that  time  remain  to  instruct  us,  the  eager 
expectation  of  the  time,  which  they  expresed  in  their 
day,  has  also  remained,  a  token  of  the  true  frame  of 
mind  in  which  each  succeeding  age  (and  each  succeeding 
age  more  strongly  than  the  last)  should  contemplate 
the  ever-approaching  coming  of  the  Lord.  On  the  cer- 
tainty of  the  event  our  faith  is  grounded :  by  the  un- 
certainty of  the  time  our  hope  is  stimulated,  and  our 
watchfulness  aroused"  ("The  New  Testament  for  En- 
glish Readers"). 

Hallelujah!  Maranatha !  Amen!  Even  so, 
come,  Lord  Jesus ! 

VII.     The    Yielded    Liee    in    Relation    to 
Weak  Brethren  (14:  i  to  15 :  7). 

1.  "Him  that  is  weak  in  the  faith  receive  ye" 

(14:  i).  The  believer's  normal  attitude  towards 
his  weak  brother  in  Christ  is  epitomized  in  this 
brief  exhortation.  Despite  his  weakness,  he  is  a 
brother,  and  he  ought  to  be  acknowledged  as 
such,  received  as  such ;  and  every  action  towards 
him  should  be  in  view  of  this  relationship.  The 
all-sufficient  reason  is  given  in  the  final  verse  of 
the  section:  "Wherefore  receive  one  another,  as 
Christ  also  received  us  to  the  glory  of  God"  (15  : 

7). 

2.  "But  not  to  doubtful  disputations"  (i). 
The  margin  here  is,  "Not  to  judge  his  doubtful 
thoughts."  The  English  Revisers  have  in  their 
margin,  "not  for  decisions  of  doubts;"  and  the 
American  Revision  has,  in  the  text,  "not  for  de- 


2i6  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

cision  of  scruples."  The  meaning  is  plain.  We 
are  to  receive  our  weak  brethren  as  brethren,  and 
not  merely  for  purposes  of  argumentation.  Re- 
ceive them  "as  Christ  also  received  us,  to  the 
glory  of  God." 

3.  "For  one  believeth  that  he  may  eat  all 
things:  another,  who  is  weak,  eateth  herbs" 
(2).  This  14th  chapter  of  Romans  and  the  8th  of 
1st  Corinthians  are  devoted  to  the  question 
v^hether  Christians  should  eat  meat  vvrhich  had 
been  offered  to  idols.  It  v^as  a  ''burning  ques- 
tion" in  the  early  churches.  Large  quantities  of 
meat  were  brought  to  the  numerous  heathen  tem- 
ples and  presented  in  the  worship  of  idols.  Of 
course,  the  idols  had  no  use  for  it,  and  even  the 
priests  could  not  consume  all  of  it,  and  therefore 
it  was  sold  to  the  public  through  the  markets. 
This  made  it  almost  if  not  quite  impossible  for 
one  to  discover  whether  the  meat  on  his  own 
table  had  not  come  from  an  idol's  temple.  The 
stronger  Christians  cared  not  for  this,  believing 
that  they  might  "eat  all  things."  They  knew 
that  "an  idol  is  nothing  in  the  world,  and  that 
there  is  none  other  God  but  one"  (i  Cor.  8:4). 
"Howbeit  there  is  not  in  every  man  that  knowl- 
edge," and  these  weaker  brethren  found  them- 
selves unable  to  eat  of  "a  thing  offered  to  an 
idol"  ( I  Cor.  8:7).  To  go  on  eating  these  things 
was  to  defile  their  conscience,  and  in  order  to  be 
on  the  perfectly  safe  side,  they  ate  herbs;  that 
is,  they  confined  their  diet  to  vegetables. 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  217 

4.  "Let  not  him  that  eateth  despise  him  that 
eateth  not;  and  let  not  him  that  eateth  not 
judge  him  that  eateth"  (3).  The  need  for  this 
exhortation  may  be  readily  understood.  The 
strong  in  faith  would  be  under  temptation  to  de- 
spise or  ''set  at  nought"  his  weaker  brother  (see 
verse  10)  ;  while  the  weak  in  faith  would  be  liable 
to  censure  his  stronger*  brother.  But  this  must 
be  avoided :  we  must  not  despise  our  brother,  nor 
judge  him,  "for  God  hath  received  him.  Who 
art  thou  that  judgest  the  servant  of  another? 
{R.  v.).  To  his  own  master  he  standeth  or 
falleth.  Yea,  he  shall  be  holden  up :  for  God  is 
able  to  make  him  stand"  (vs.  3,  4). 

5.  "One  man  esteemeth  one  day  above  an- 
other: another  esteemeth  every  day  alike"  (5). 
Here  was  another  problem,  and  one  that  may 
come  nearer  home,  for  it  is  a  present-day  prob- 
lem. What  is  to  be  done  in  such  a  case?  Some 
are  stronger  than  others,  and  clearer  on  the  doc- 
trines of  grace.  They  deny  any  man's  right  to 
judge  them,  "in  meat,  or  in  drink,  or  in  respect 
of  an  holy  day,  or  of  the  new  moon,  or  of  the  sab- 
bath :  which  are  a  shadow  of  things  to  come,  but 
the  body  is  of  Christ"  (Col.  2:16,17).  They  de- 
clare their  liberty  from  the  law,  and  insist  that 
their  freedom  has  been  too  dearly  bought  to  be 
easily  surrendered;  they  are  constantly  exhort- 
ing us  to  "stand  fast  therefore  in  the  liberty 
wherewith  Christ  hath  made  us  free,  and  be  not 
entangled  again  in  the  yoke  of  bondage"  (Gal.  5  : 
T ) .    On  the  other  hand,  there  are  weaker  breth- 


2i8  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

ren  who  cannot  see  this  at  all.  These  dear  ones 
are  fearful;  they  are  shocked  to  hear  men  talk 
of  their  "eternal  security  in  Christ:"  they  are 
timid ;  they  hope  it  will  be  all  right  and  that  they 
will  somehow  be  "saved  at  last ;"  but  they  insist 
that  "there  is  such  a  thing  as  being  too  sure." 
What  then?  how  shall  these  dear  ones  be  dealt 
with?  are  they  to  be  despised?  or,  are  we  to 
enter  into  "doubtful  disputations"  with  them,  and 
seek  to  decide  their  scruples  for  them?  Nay, 
since  "God  hath  received"  them,  let  us  also  re- 
ceive them,  and  love  them,  and  pray  for  them, 
and  bear  with  them.  Meanwhile,  "let  every  man 
be  fully  persuaded  in  his  own  mind."  True  it  is, 
"brethren,"  that  "ye  have  been  called  unto  liber- 
ty; only  use  not  liberty  for  an  occasion  to  the 
flesh,  but  by  love  serve  one  another"  (Gal.  5: 
13).  Ye  must  "take  heed  lest  by  any  means  this 
liberty  of  yours  become  a  stumblingblock  to  them 
that  are  weak"  (i  Cor.  8:9). 

6.  "He  that  regardeth  the  day,  regardeth  it 
unto  the  Lord"  (6).  The  remainder  of  this 
sentence  is  omitted  from  the  Revision,  because  it 
is  not  found  in  the  best  manuscripts.  Dr.  Moffatt 
translates :  "The  man  who  values  a  particular 
day  does  so  to  the  Lord.  The  eater  eats  to  the 
Lord,  since  he  thanks  God  for  his  food;  the 
non-eater  abstains  to  the  Lord,  and  he  too  thanks 
God.  For  none  of  us  lives  to  himself,  and  none 
of  us  dies  to  himself ;  if  we  live,  we  live  to  the 
Lord,  and  if  we  die,  we  die  to  the  Lord.     Thus 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  219 

we  are  the  Lord's  whether  we  live  or  die"  (vs. 
6-8). 

7.  "For  to  this  end  Christ  died  and  lived 
again"  (9).  We  quote  the  Revision,  much  to  be 
preferred  here.  The  purpose  in  Christ's  death 
and  resurrection  was  to  establish  His  lordship 
over  all — "that  He  might  be  Lord  of  both  the 
dead  and  the  living."  In  2  Cor.  5:  14,  15,  it  is 
written  "that  One  died  for  all,  therefore  all  died : 
and  He  died  for  all,  that  they  that  live  should  no 
longer  live  unto  themselves,  but  unto  Him  Who 
for  their  sakes  died  and  rose  again." 

8.  "But  why  dost  thou  judge  thy  brother?" 
(10).  This  challenge,  addressed  to  the  weaker 
Christian,  is  at  once  followed  by  another  aimed  at 
the  stronger  one:  "Or  why  dost  thou  set  at 
nought  thy  brother?"  This  is  not  the  time  for 
judging.  There  is  a  time  coming  when  "the 
saints  shall  judge  the  world"  (i  Cor.  6:2),  but 
meanwhile,  we  are  to  "judge  nothing  before  the 
time,  until  the  Lord  come,  who  both  will  bring  to 
light  the  hidden  things  of  darkness,  and  will 
make  manifest  the  counsels  of  the  hearts:  and 
then  shall  every  man  have  praise  of  God"  ( i  Cor. 

4:5)- 

9.  "For  we  shall  all  stand  before  the  judg- 
ment seat  of  God"  (10).  This  is  the  correct 
reading,  rather  than  "the  judgment  seat  of 
Christ,"  as  in  the  King  James  Version.  The 
thought  of  the  passage  is  that  each  individual 
must  answer  for  himself  and  not  for  another, 


220  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

"for  it  is  written,  As  I  live,  saith  the  Lord,  every 
knee  shall  bow  to  Me,  and  every  tongue  shall  con- 
fess to  God.  So  then  every  one  of  us  shall  give 
account  of  himself  to  God"  (vs.  ii,  12;  compare 
Isa.  45:23;  Phil.  2:10,  11).  The  exhortation 
of  the  thirteenth  verse  follows  logically :  *Xet  us 
not  therefore  judge  one  another  any  more:  but 
judge  this  rather,  that  no  man  put  a  stumbling- 
block  or  an  occasion  to  fall  in  his  brother's  way." 
The  judgment  that  is  needed'  is  self-judgment 
rather  than  the  judging  of  others  (i  Cor.  11 :  31, 

32). 

10.  "I  know,  and  am  persuaded  by  the  Lord 
Jesus,  that  there  is  nothing  unclean  of  itself" 
(14).  Paul  saw  his  liberty  fully;  he  was  not 
under  law,  but  under  grace  (Rom.  6:  14)  ;  he 
knew  that  the  Lord  Jesus  had  brought  an  end  to 
the  law  (Rom.  10:  4)  ;  that  he  had  set  aside  the 
dietary  requirements  of  the  law  of  Moses,  "mak- 
ing all  meats  clean"  (Mk.  7:  19,  R.  V.)  ;  and  he 
taught  clearly  in  all  his  epistles  that  "every  crea- 
ture of  God  is  good,  and  nothing  to  be  refused,  if 
it  be  received  with  thanksgiving :  for  it  is  sancti- 
fied by  the  Word  of  God  and  prayer"  (i  Tim.  4: 

4,5). 

11.  "But  to  him  that  esteemeth  any  thing  to 
be  unclean,  to  him  it  is  unclean"  ( 14) .  In  such 
a  case,  it  is  better  to  abstain,  because  "he  that 
doubteth  is  condemned  (that  is,  self -condemned) 
if  he  eat,  because  he  eateth  not  of  faith;  and 
whatsoever  is  not  of  faith  is  sin"  (v.  23)  ;  there- 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  221 

fore  he  writes :  "If  your  brother  is  being  injured 
because  you  eat  a  certain  food,  then  you  are  no 
longer  living  by  the  rule  of  love.  Do  not  let  that 
food  of  yours  ruin  the  man  for  whom  Christ 
died.  Your  rights  must  not  get  a  bad  name"  (vs. 
15,  16,  Mo ffatt). 

12.  "For  the  kingdom  of  God  is  not  meat 
and  drink;  but  righteousness,  and  peace,  and 
joy  in  the  Holy  Ghost"  (17).  It  is  as  if  the 
Holy  Spirit  Himself  had  become  tired  of  writing 
about  eating  and  drinking,  and  longed  to  lead  the 
Lord's  people  out  of  such  low  considerations  and 
into  the  higher  atmosphere  of  the  kingdom  of 
God.  Observe  the  order  of  these  elements  in  the 
kingdom  of  God ;  first  righteousness,  then  peace, 
then  joy,  in  the  Holy  Spirit.  No  peace  apart 
from  righteousness!  It  is  when  we  have  been 
justified  by  faith  that  we  enter  into  peace  with 
God  (Rom.  5:1),  and  this  peace  leads  to  joy. 
"We  have  peace  with  God  through  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,. . .  .and  rejoice  in  hope  of  the  glory 
of  God"  (Rom.  5:1,  2).  This  is  the  right  view 
of  Christian  living.  As  Moff att  again  translates : 
"You  must  not  break  down  God's  work  for  the 
mere  sake  of  food!  Everything  may  be  clean, 
but  it  is  wrong  for  a  man  to  prove  a  stumbling- 
block  by  what  he  eats ;  the  right  course  is  to  ab- 
stain from  flesh  or  wine  or  indeed  anything  that 
your  brother  feels  to  be  a  stumbling-block.  Cer- 
tainly keep  your  own  'conviction  on  the  matter,  as 
between  yourself  and  God ;  he  is  a  fortunate  man 


:>22  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

who  has  no  misgivings  about  what  he  allows  him- 
self to  eat.  But  if  anyone  has  doubts  about  eat- 
ing and  then  eats,  that  condemns  him  at  once ;  it 
was  not  faith  that  induced  him  to  eat,  and  any 
action  that  is  not  based  on  faith  is  a  sin"  (vs.  i8- 

23)- 

13.  "We  then  that  are  strong  ought  to  bear 
the  infirmities  of  the  weak,  and  not  to  please 
ourselves"  (15:  i).  The  rule  of  Christian  love 
given  in  14:21  is  here -reiterated  and  amplified: 
"Let  every  one  of  us  please  his  neighbour  for  his 
good  to  edification"  (v.  2),  and  for  the  very  good 
reason  that  "even  Christ  pleased  not  Himself; 
but,  as  it  is  written,  The  reproaches  of  them  that 
reproached  Thee  fell  on  Me"  (vs.  2,  3 ;  compare 
Ps.  69:9;   I  Pet  2:  23). 

14.  "For  whatsoever  things  were  written 
aforetime  were  written  for  our  learning,  that 
we  through  patience  and  comfort  of  the  Scrip- 
tures might  have  hope"  (4).  This  illuminating 
reference  to  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures  is  used 
here  to  sum  up  the  exhortation  begun  in  14:  i, 
and  is  followed  by  the  prayer  of  15:5,  6,  and 
the  final  word  of  v.  7. 

VIII.  Confirming    Promises    and    Showing 
Mercy  (15:8-13). 

I.  "Now  I  say"  (8).  The  true  reading  is, 
"For  I  say,"  as  given  in  the  Revision,  and  Dr. 
Stifler  explains  that  the  "for"  introduces  "the 
long  passage  following  to  show  how  Christ  re- 


THE  CHRISTIAN  WALK.  22.3 

ceived  both  parties.  The  word  'meat'  and  the 
words  'strong'  and  'weak'  are  r^ot  again  used ;  but 
instead  the  two  nationalities  in  the  church  appear, 
the  Jew  and  the  Gentile,  showing  that  the  divi- 
sion in  dietary  matters  ran  in  the  main  between 
these  two.  The  Jew  would  be  the  weak  man,  the 
Gentile  the  strong ;  but  there  were  doubtless  ex- 
ceptions on  both  sides." 

2.  "That  Jesus  Christ  was  a  minister  of  the 
circumcision  for  the  truth  of  Godj  to  confirm 
the  promises  made  unto  the  fathers"  (8).  The 
ministry  of  Christ  was  "to  the  Jew  first."  Great 
and  wonderful  promises  had  been  made  to  Israel, 
and  these  promises  must  be  redeemed ;  so  Christ 
"became  a  servant  to  the  circumcised  in  order  to 
prove  God's  honesty"  (Moffatt)  ;  or,  "in  vindica- 
tion of  God's  truthfulness — in  showing  how  sure 
are  the  promises  made"  to  the  fathers  (Weyr 
mouth).  Many  of  these  Old  Testament  prom- 
ises were  fulfilled  in  connection  with  the  first  ad- 
vent of  Christ.  Every  jot  and  tittle  was  accom- 
plished which  had  relation  to  "the  sufferings  of 
Christ,"  and  the  remaining  promises  were  re- 
iterated and  confirmed.  The  Lord  Jesus  is  com- 
ing again  to  fulfill  in  every  jot  and  tittle  the  prom- 
ises having  to  do  with  "the  glory  that  should  fol- 
low" (i  Pet.  i:  11). 

3.  "And  that  the  Gentiles  might  glorify  God 
for  his  mercy"  (9).  "Mercy"  is  the  emphatic 
word  here,  and  is  in  contrast  with  "the  prom- 
ises" of  the  preceding  verse.     God  had  made  no 


224  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

promises  directly  to  the  Gentile  nations,  and  so 
the  ministry  of  Christ  to  the  Gentiles  is  a  matter 
of  pure  mercy. 

4.  "As  it  is  written"  (9).  The  apostle  now 
brings  forward  four  Old  Testament  Scriptures  to 
prove  that  this  showing  of  mercy  to  Gentiles  was 
foreseen.  These  quotations  have  not  the  char- 
acter of  promises  to  Gentiles,  but  are  neverthe- 
less predictive  of  the  work  of  the  gospel  among 
them :  ( i )  "For  this  cause  I  will  confess  to  Thee 
among  the  Gentiles,  and  sing  unto  Thy  name" 
(Ps.  18:  49)  ;  (2)  "Rejoice,  ye  Gentiles,  with  His 
people"  (Deut.  32:43);  (3)  "Praise  the  Lord, 
all  ye  Gentiles;  and  laud  Him,  all  ye  peoples" 
(Ps.  117:1);  (4)  "There  shall  be  a  root  of 
Jesse,  and  He  that  shall  rise  to  reign  over  the 
Gentiles;  in  Him  shall  the  Gentiles  trust"  (Isa. 
11:  I,  10). 

5,  "Now  the  God  of  hope  fill  you  with  all  joy 
and  peace  in  believing,  that  ye  may  abound  in 
hope,  through  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost" 
(13).  "Hope,"  in  this  verse,  is  the  same  as  is 
translated  "trust"  in  the  12th  verse  (see  R.  V.), 
and  in  the  13th  verse  it  is  preceded  in  both  in- 
stances by  the  definite  article.  It  is  the  hope  that 
is  referred  to — "that  blessed  hope"  of  Tit.  2:  13. 
The  191 1  Bible  translates:  "Now  the  God  of  the 
hope  fill  you  with  all  joy  and  peace  in  believing, 
that  ye  may  abound  in  the  hope,  through  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit," 


THE  EPILOGUE 


(15: 14—16:27) 


The  body  of  the  epistle  closes  with  the  benedic- 
tion of  15:13.  However,  there  is  much  im- 
portant teaching  in  the  concluding  paragraphs. 

1.  "And  I  myself  also  am  persuaded  of  you, 
my  brethren"  ( 14,  1 5 ) .  Paul  had  written  to  the 
Romans  not  because  they  were  not  ''full  of  good- 
ness," but  because  they  were.  The  case  is  not  as 
in  Jude  3,  but  more  like  that  in  i  Jno.  2 :  21,  27. 
He  writes  not  so  much  to  instruct,  as  to  "put 
them  in  mind"  of  what  they  already  know. 

2.  "That  I  should  be  the  minister  of  Jesus 
Christ  to  the  Gentiles"  (16).  This  verse  is 
highly  figurative.  Paul  writes  of  "ministering  as 
a  priest  (see  the  Greek)  in  the  gospel  of  God, 
that  the  offering  up  of  the  Gentiles  might  be  ac- 
ceptable, being  sanctified  by  the  Holy  Spirit." 
Dean  Alford  says  :  "The  apostle  is  using  a  figure 
in  which  he  compares  himself  to  a  priest,  and  the 
Gentiles  to  the  sacrifice  which  he  was  offering. 
The  Gentiles  themselves  are  the  offering;  so 
Theophylact,  'This  is  my  priesthood,  to  preach 
the  gospel.  My  knife  is  the  Word,  ye  are  the 
sacrifice.'  The  language  is  evidently  figurative, 
and  can  by  no  possibility  be  taken  as  a  sanction 
for  any  view  of  the  Christian  minister  as  a  sacri- 

22s 


226  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

ficing  priest,  otherwise  than  according  to  that 
figure,  namely,  that  he  offers  to  God  the  accepta- 
ble sacrifice  of  those  who  by  his  means  believe  on 
Christ."  Conybeare  *  and  Howson  translate : 
"Yet  I  have  written  to  you  somewhat  boldly  in 
parts  (of  this  letter),  to  remind  you  (rather  than 
to  teach  you),  because  of  that  gift  of  grace  which 
God  has  given  me,  whereby  He  sent  me  to  min- 
ister for  Jesus  Christ,  bearing  His  glad-tidings  to 
the  Gentiles,  that  I  might  present  them  to  God,  as 
a  priest  presents  the  offering  a  sacrifice  well- 
pleasing  unto  Him,  hallowed  by  the  working  of 
the  Holy  Spirit;"  and  a  footnote  by  the  same 
translators  reads :  "literally,  *to  minister  for 
Jesus  Christ  unto  the  Gentiles,  a  priest  present- 
ing an  offering  in  respect  of  the  glad-tidings  of 
God  that  the  Gentiles  might  be  offered  up  as  an 
offering  wellpleasing  unto  Him/  The  same 
thing  is  said  under  a  somewhat  different  meta- 
phor, 2  Cor.  11:2."  Dr.  Stifler  says:  "He  thus 
writes  because  of  the  apostolic  'grace'  (Rom.  i: 
5 ;  Eph.  3 : 8)  given  him  by  God  that  he  should 
be  a  minister,  a  spiritual  priest,  to  the  Gentiles, 
not  to  offer  a  sacrifice  for  them,  which  was  al- 
ready done,  but  to  minister  to  them  the  gospel, 
that  they  themselves  might  be  an  acceptable  'of- 
fering' to  God  (Eph.  5:26,  27;  2  Cor.  11:2). 
The  offering  is  acceptable  because  it  is  sanctified, 
made  holy,  by  the  presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
Paul  gave  men  the  gospel,  and  God  gave  such  of 
them  as  believed  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  by  these  two 


THE  BPILOGUB.  227 

means  they  became  a  fit  offering  to  God."  Num. 
8:  14-16  is  an  illustrative  passage  on  this  point. 
Moses  was  commanded  to  separate  the  Levites 
from  among  the  children  of  Israel :  "And  thou 
shalt  cleanse  them,  and  offer  them  for  an  offer- 
ing." 

3.  "I  have  therefore  whereof  I  may  glory 
through  Jesus  Christ"  (17-21).  In  this  para- 
graph Paul  speaks  of  his  great  privilege  as  a  min- 
ister of  the  gospel  to  the  Gentiles,  and  points  to 
the  "mighty  signs  and  wonders"  accompanying 
his  ministry  as  a  proof  that  Christ  was  working 
through  him  "by  the  power  of  the  Spirit  of  God." 
He  had  preached  the  gospel  "from  Jerusalem, 
and  round  about  unto  Illyricum,"  not  building 
upon  foundations  already  laid,  but  preaching 
where  Christ  had  not  been  named,  thus  fulfilling 
the  Word  of  God  as  written  in  Isa.  52:  15,  "To 
whom  He  was  not  spoken  of,  they  shall  see :  and 
they  that  have  not  heard  shall  understand." 

4.  "For  which  cause  also  I  have  been  much 
hindered  from  coming  to  you"  (22-24).  He 
declares  his  purpose  to  come  to  Rome  when  he 
should  take  his  journey  into  Spain.  Whether 
Paul  ever  reached  Spain  is  uncertain,  but  we 
know  that  he  did  reach  Rome,  though  as  "a  pris- 
oner of  Jesus  Christ"  (Rom.  1:9-15;  15:22- 
24;  Eph.  3:  i;  4:1). 

5.  "But  now  I  go  unto  Jerusalem  to  minister 
unto  the  saints"  (25-33).  Paul's  reference  here 
is  to  the  collection  which  he  was  engaged  in  gath- 


228  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

ering  for  the  poor  among  the  Christians  at  Jeru- 
salem. There  are  numerous  references  to  this 
collection  in  his  epistles  (see  also  Acts  24:  17). 
The  churches  of  Macedonia  and  Achaia  had  been 
pleased  to  make  this  contribution,  and  Paul  com- 
mends them  for  it,  for  "their  debtors  they  are. 
For  if  the  Gentiles  have  been  made  partakers  of 
their  spiritual  things,  their  duty  is  also  to  minister 
unto  them  in  carnal  things"  (compare  i  Cor.  9: 
11).  When  he  has  finished  this  task  of  minister- 
ing to  his  brethren  in  Jerusalem,  he  intends  to  go 
via  Rome  to  Spain,  and  he  is  sure  that  when  he 
comes  he  will  "come  in  the  fulness  of  the  blessing 
of  the  gospel  of  Christ."  He  beseeches  the  Ro- 
man brethren  to  pray  for  him  in  connection  with 
this  Jerusalem  mission,  and  he  makes  this  appeal 
"for  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ's  sake,  and  for  the 
love  of  the  Spirit."  We  read  in  Galatians  that 
"the  fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  love,"  and  here  we  are 
reminded  of  the  love  which  the  Holy  Spirit  bears 
unto  His  people.  The  chapter  closes  with  the 
apostolic  benediction :  "Now  the  God  of  peace  be 
with  you  all.     Amen." 

6.  "I  commend  unto  you  Phebe  our  sister" 
(16:  1-16).  This  chapter  is  headed  by  Dr.  Sco- 
field,  "The  outflow  of  Christian  love."  It  is 
beautiful  to  observe  the  variety  of  the  greetings 
sent  to  those  in  Rome  who  were  personally 
known  to  Paul.  He  himself  had  never  visited  the 
Roman  church,  but  all  roads  led  to  Rome,  and  it 
had   come  to   pass   that   many   of  his   personal 


THE  BPILOGUB.  229 

friends  had  gone  to  Rome  from  the  churches 
which  he  himself  had  been  instrumental  in  found- 
ing. We  have  heard  before  of  Priscilla  and 
Aquila,  and  of  some  of  the  others  mentioned  in 
this  list.  The  13th  verse  is  particularly  touch- 
ing: ''Salute  Rufus  chosen  in  the  Lord,  and  his 
mother  and  mine."  This  is  a  pathetic  reference 
to  the  tender  relationship  between  God's  children. 
Rufus  was  Paul's  brother  in  the  Lord,  and  Rufus' 
mother  had  at  some  time  ministered  to  Paul  as 
a  mother,  and  so  he  speaks  of  her  as  his  own 
mother. 

7.  "Now  I  beseech  you,  brethren"  (17-20). 
He  warns  them  against  those  who  would  cause 
divisions  and  introduce  schism  into  the  sweet  at- 
mosphere of  spiritual  unity  suggested  by  these 
relationships  of  which  he  has  been  speaking. 
These  false  teachers  were  to  be  avoided,  for  they 
"by  good  words  and  fair  speeches  deceive  the 
hearts  of  the  simple."  The  obedience  of  the  Ro- 
man saints  is  known  far  and  wide.  Paul  is  glad 
on  this  account,  but  he  exhorts  them  to  further 
obedience  in  turning  away  from  false  doctrines, 
for  he  would  have  them  "wise  unto  that  which  is 
good,  and  simple  concerning  evil."  The  promise 
of  the  20th  verse  is  to  encourage  them  in  patient 
waiting:  "The  God  of  peace  shall  bruise  Satan 
under  your  feet  shortly"  (compare  Gen.  3:  15). 
This  section  also  closes  with  a  benediction :  "The 
grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  be  with  you. 
Amen." 


230  SIMPLE  STUDIES  IN  ROMANS. 

8.  "Timotheus  my  workfellow,  and  Lucius, 
and  Jason,  and  Sosipater,  my  kinsmen,  salute 
you"  (21-24).  Paul  has  been  sending  saluta- 
tions to  Christians  in  Rome ;  he  now  sends  salu- 
tations from  Christians  who  are  with  him. 
"Timotheus"  and  ''Lucius"  are  better  known  to 
us  as  "Timothy"  and  "Luke."  Tertius  is  Paul's 
amanuensis.  Gaius,  now  Paul's  host,  is  doubtless 
the  man  alluded  to  in  i  Cor.  i :  14.  He  is  also 
the  host  "of  the  whole  church,"  for  the  Corin- 
thian church  was  probably  holding  its  meetings  in 
his  house.  A  striking  contrast  is  presented  by 
"Erastus  the  chamberlain  of  the  city,"  a  high 
municipal  official,  and  "Ouartus  a  brother,"  who 
joined  in  these  Christian  salutations.  Quartus' 
name  means  fourth,  just  as  Tertius  is  also  a 
Latin  numeral,  and  means  third.  These  men,  it 
has  been  conjectured,  were  formerly  occupied  as 
galley  slaves,  or  in  some  other  occupation  where 
they  were  numbered  instead  of  named.  The 
Greek,  in  verse  23,  reads,  "Quartus  the  brother," 
instead  of  "a  brother ;"  he  is  just  "Brother  Quar- 
tus." From  a  nameless  condition  he  had  been 
exalted  to  the  position  of  a  holy  brother  (Heb. 
3:1)  in  Christ  (compare  i  Sam.  2  :  6-8),  and  was 
in  an  equal  brotherhood  with  the  city  chamber- 
lain. 

9.  "Now  to  him  that  is  of  power  to  stablish 
you"  (25-27).  This  closing  paragraph  is  of 
great  doctrinal  importance  as  touching  the  person 
of  Christ,   (i)  God  is  "of  power  to  stablish"  His 


THE  EPILOGUE.  231 

people;  (2)  He  stablishes  them  according  to 
Paul's  gospel  and  the  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ  ; 
(3)  this  preaching  of  Jesus  Christ  by  which  God 
stablishes  His  people  must  be  a  "preaching  of 
Jesus  Christ  according  to  the  revelation  of  the 
mystery."  There  is  much  preaching  of  Jesus 
Christ  which  does  not  establish  God's  people,  be- 
cause it  is  not  according  to  Paul's  gospel,  nor  "ac- 
cording to  the  revelation  of  the  mystery,  which 
was  kept  secret  since  the  world  began,"  but  was 
made  manifest  by  revelation  to  the  apostle  Paul 
(compare  Eph.  3:  1-7).  The  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
"according  to  the  revelation  of  the  mystery"  is 
(i)  "the  Mighty  God"  from  eternity  (Isa.  9: 
6) ;  (2)  "Immanuel,  God  with  us"  in  flesh 
(Isa.  7:14;  Mt.  1:21-23);  (3)  "our  Pass- 
over sacrificed  for  us"  (i  Cor.  5:7;  compare 
Ex.  12 :  12)  ;  (4)  "the  Great  Shepherd"  in  res- 
urrection (Heb.  13:20,  21;  Rom.  1:4);  (5) 
"High  Priest  over  the  house  of  God"  (Heb.  10: 
21 ;  3 :  14)  ;  (6)  "Christ  in  us,  the  hope  of  glory" 
(Col.  1:26,  2y;  Gal.  2:20);  (7)  the  coming 
King  over  the  whole  earth  (Zech.  14 :  9 ;  Jer  23 : 
5,  6). 

"TO  GOD  ONLY  WISE,  BE  GLORY 
THROUGH  JESUS  CHRIST  FOR  EVER. 
AMEN." 


Serving-and-Waiting 

Treating   the   International   Sunday    School   Lesson 
A  Monthly  Bible  Study  Magazine 


Each  issue  containing  a  sermon  by  Dr.  C.  L  Sco- 
field;  ably  written  articles  on  fundamental  doctrines 
and  a  thorough  treatment  of  the  Sunday  School 
lesson. 

Edited  by 

WILLIAM  L.  PETTINGILL 

The    author   of    "God's    Prophecies   for    Plain    People;"    "Simple 

Studies  in    Matthew;"   "Romans;"   "Daniel;"   "Revelation;" 

"Israel,  Jehovah's  Covenant  People;"  "The  Coming 

One,"    etc. 


The  estimate  of  Charles  G.  Trumbull,  Editor  of 
the  "Sunday  School  Times,"  of  Mr.  Pettingill: 

"Mr.  Pettingill  has  the  Spirit-given  gift  of  teach- 
ing mentioned  by  Paul  in  his  letters  to  the  Corinthians 
and  the  Ephesians  in  a  marked  degree.  A  keen  sense 
of  humor  is  only  one  of  the  elements  that  enter  into 
his  magnetic  personality.  Like  Moody,  he  realizes  the 
value  of  a  sanctified  imagination.  My  soul  was 
thrilled  as  I  heard  him  several  years  ago  at  a  Bible 
Conference  picture  a  scene  that  would  take  place  in 
the  Cave  of  Macpelah  at  the  resurrection." 


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leader.     Build  a  club — write  for  samples. 


SERVING-AND-WAITING 

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Philadelphia,  Pa. 


There  are  Great  Highways  Through  the  Bible 


MOST  PEOPLE    J^J^       DO  YOU 
DON'T  SEE      ^j^K     WANT  TO 
THEM  HIP     SEE  THEM? 


If  you  cannot  come  to  the  school  for  oral  teaching  then  you 
should  study 

The  Scofield  Bible  Study  Leaflets 

WHICH  WILL  PROVE  AN  EXCELLENT  GUIDE 

Eighty-one  outline  lessons  or  studies,  on  sixty-four 

fundamental    subjects    arranged    to    require  first-hand 

study  of   the   Bible  itself.      Most   excellent  for   Bible 
classes  and  Sunday-school  work. 

3_     ,       Series  1. — 27  Lessons         _    _  Unbound  Leaflets 

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*^"^^  Series  3.— 27  Lessons        *'  i^u^a   Combination  Book 


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cover,  price,  $1.50.     Postage  extra. 


PHILADELPHIA  SCHOOL  OF  THE  BIBLE 

1721-23  SPRING  GARDEN   STREET     -     PHILADELPHIA,  PA. 


,  Five  Books 

By  WILLIAM  L.  PETTINGILL 

Dean  Philadelphia  School  of  the  Bible  and  Editor 
"Serving-and- Waiting" 

Simple  Studies  Series 

The  Truth  Made  Plain 

These  books  are  just  what  the  name  adopted 
indicates — Simple  Studies — easily  comprehended 
studies  avoiding  difficult  questions  and  technical 
language  and  presenting  the  truth  clearly,  forcibly 
and  scripturally.  They  are  within  the  comprehen- 
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attention  of  every  student  of  God's  Word. 


SIMPLE    STUDIES    IN    DANIEL 

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SIMPLE   STUDIES   IN    MATTHEW 
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ISRAEL,    JEHOVAH'S    COVENANT    PEOPLE 

Being  Reprinted 


PHILADELPHIA      SCHOOL      OF      THE       BIBLE 
1721-23  Spring  Garden  Street,  Philadelphia,   Penna. 


PHILADELPHIA 
SCHOOL  OF  THE  BIBLE 


C.  I.  SCOFIELD  WM.  L.  PETTINGILL 

President  Dean 

J.  DAVIS  ADAMS,  General  Secretary 


DAY  AND  EVENING  COURSES 

THREE  TERMS   PER   YEAR 

TUITION  FREE 

To  one  who  is  interested  in  the  things  of  God  and  in  the 
ministry  of  the  Word  of  God,  certainly  the  outstanding  need 
today  is  the  training  of  preachers,  teachers  and  missionaries 
BibHcally.  The  strength  of  the  false  teachers'  position  lies  in 
the  ignorance  of  the  Bible  on  the  part  of  God's  people. 

The  full  course  of  instruction  in  the  Day  School  covers  two 
years  and  in  the  Evening  School  four  years,  of  three  terms  each 
year,  each  of  which  has  its  specific  work.  While  students  may 
secure  the  privilege  of  entering  at  such  times  as  conditions 
warrant,  it  is  obviously  of  advantage  to  enter  at  the  beginning 
of  a  term  and  especially  of  the  Fall  Term. 

The  object  of  the  School  is  to  train  men  and  women  in  the 
knowledge  and  use  of  the  English  Bible  and  to  deepen  the 
spiritual  life.  It  also  proposes  to  give  a  practical  knowledge  of 
preaching,  Bible  teaching,  evangelism,  missionary  work,  Gospel 
music  and  of  the  methods  of  Christian  work  that  are  necessary 
for  the  equipment  of  the  believer  for  witness-bearing  and  service. 

As  a  center  of  testimony  to  fundamental  truth  to  a  wide 
and  rapidly  increasing  territory,  the  School  has  advantages  that 
attract  students  and  stewards  of  the  Lord's  money. 

Young  Man!  Young  Woman!  Have  you  answered  the 
Lord's  question,  "Who  will  go  for  us.'"'  and  are  you  prepared  to 
go  into  the  harvest  field  at  home  or  abroad? 

For  information  write 

PHILADELPHIA  SCHOOL  OF  THE  BIBLE 

1721-23  Spring  Garden  Street 
PHILADELPHIA,  PA. 


vl  nliKL  y??r  ''•»''!'  "d  tY  n  I 

^^^^^^,^^^^^      Bibles,  and  ^^^^^_^,^^ 

THREE  REASONS 
for  you  to  consider  carefully  and  prayerfully 


1.  All  profits  from  its  book  business  go  to  the 
support  of  the  Philadelphia  School  of  the  Bible 
— no  profits  go  to  any  person  or  persons. 

The  management  of  the  school  wants  to  increase  the  pro- 
fits of  its  book  business  until  these  profits  are  sufficient  to 
meet  (as  they  do  now  in  part)  the  entire  cost  of  taxes, 
light,  office  expenses,  clerical  help,  management,  etc.,  so 
that  all  contributions  may  be  used  exclusively  for  teachers, 
Bible  classes,  conferences,  evangelistic  and  other  lines 
of  work. 

2.  No  unscriptural  books  are  or  will  be  know- 
ingly sold  under  any  circumstances — orders  for 
such  when  received  are  refused. 

It  is  of  common  knowledge  that  you  can  buy  a  doctrin- 
ally  unsound  book  from  almost  any  book  store,  and  that 
such  books  are  sometimes  put  on  sale  in  book  stores  con- 
ducted by  Christian  men  and  denominations  and 
brought  to  the  attention  of  customers.  Surely  believers 
should  support  a  store  that  excludes  books  that  oppose 
the  truth. 

3.  Prices  are  as  reasonable  as  can  be  obtained 
elsewhere. 

Even  were  our  prices  higher  in  rare  instances,  we  might 
reasonably  expect  those  that  love  the  truth  to  buy  from 
the  school — how  much  more  might  we  then  ask  you  to 
give  the  management  a  chance  to  meet  lower  prices  before 
you  buy  elsewhere  unless  such  reduction  is  refused  you. 


BUY  YOUR  BOOKS  AND  BIBLES  FROM 

Philadelphia  School  of  the  Bible 

Publishers,  Importers  and  Sellers  of 

Doctrinally  correct  Books  and  Pamphlets 

1721-23  Sprint  Garden  St.      Philadelphia,  Pa. 


Princeton  Theological  Seminary  Libraries 


ry  LiDrane: 


1    1012  01206  4061 


i 


